Oldie But Goodie

March 31, 2008 in Quilting

Wow! I love what this quilter did with one of my older patterns. This was one of my favorite quilt designs from back then. I remember it was a little ahead of it’s time – before the big “Celestial” theme was really hot. Remember all the Moons, stars and suns?  Are we ready for more of that kind of art again? Let me know your opinion on that. You know whatever goes around, seems to come around again. Need I say, Bellbottoms!

Dear Debbie,
 
I purchased your pattern Moon Struck some time ago. Here is the finished top. I added a different pattern to the outside because it looked like shooting stars or maybe meteors. The top is for a group I am part of, Quilts from Caring Hands, in Corvallis Oregon. We make quilts for children in crisis that are distributed through several local agencies. 
 
Your fabrics and patterns are my favorite. I have many of your books and enjoy reading them over and over, like a good novel. Thank you.
 
Vickie

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Friends & Family Photos

March 26, 2008 in Friendship

Sometime a photo can tell such a sweet story. In this case, it was Easter and baby Kate sat on my lap and we read a very quick story. She loves to turn the pages faster than I can read the words off the page. She also reads along in her own little one-year old language. Murphy, who loves all creatures that are cute and little, held Kate for a few minutes too. At least until she squirmed her way out of his lap. Isn’t my little boy cute?  It has been so wonderful to have Murphy in the house for Spring Break! I’ll say that again – It has been SO WONDERFUL to have Murphy in the house. My quiet, empty nest has life again! Murphy and Anna downloaded that sweet duet from the movie “Juno” and sang it over and over to each other. (I had to run and get my camera to capture the moment) They are such a charming and darling little couple. A friend of mine that goes back to GRADE SCHOOL was in Spokane visiting and we had breakfast together and snapped a few photos together. She has spent most of her adult life as a Missionary in Indonesia with an organization called M.A.F. (Mission Aviation Fellowship) It was great to catch up with her. 

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A Special Birthday or Mother’s Day Gift

March 21, 2008 in Crafts, Scrapbooking

It was Kathy’s birthday this week. I put together this little gift basket of goodies for her and the “group” suggested I share it in my blog. So I gave it to Kathy and then immediately took it out of her hands to take a quick photo. I used Scrapbook paper and supplies to decorate this basket full of bathroom luxuries.

Supplies:
Coordinated assortment of:
Scrapbook paper
Press on letters
Dimensional embellishments
Ribbon
Craft paper
Tissue paper
Rub-on or clear acetate quotes or words
Fancy Soaps
Lotion
Clear Votive with colored sand
Small Basket

The concept is simple, fun to do and pretty self explanatory by looking at the photo – but I did learn a couple little tips to share with you in case you’re inspired to do the same. I ran all my “parts” through a Xyron machine and hoped that would work to adhere them to these surfaces. However, the papers lifted off the glass surface. (bummer) It needed a little extra strong glue to make it adhere! Also, I had to command it to “Stay!” I also made the mistake of buying a round bottle of lotion and thought I could wrap a band of paper around the bottle. This one lifted too. Sigh……….But I found with a flat sided lotion bottle and (yippee!) I could make that work. A lot of times the fancy soaps come in fancy wrappers that don’t coordinate with your colors. I covered the bars in craft paper before layering the coordinating papers on them. When I was out shopping, I only found sayings that I liked in acetate – but if you can find rub-on’s – they would be much easier to work with.

Hopefully with these tips, you’ll avoid some of the mistakes I made and reach success in time to put together a special birthday or Mother’s Day gift.

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True Loyalties revealed

March 19, 2008 in Television

OK, last night was a major dilemma. There was a programming conflict between American Idol and Dancing with the Stars. There was a one hour overlap of the two shows. I discussed my concerns at the office yesterday and Tom pointed out that it was like having a Date with two men on the same night! Something like a plot from an old “Three’s Company” episode – one date is in the kitchen and the other is in the living room being distracted by the antics of “Jack.” I thought that was a great analogy but unfortunately since my personal life is more about my TV addictions than dating – it’s also kind of tragic. I don’t know – maybe that is fortunate – not that I really date - but when I’m on a date that sucks – I find myself longing to be home in my PJ’s watching TV.

Anyway, back to my point. I do love both shows and in fact may be clinically “addicted.” So last night was the true test of where my strongest loyalty lied. American Idol had an advantage because it started an hour earlier – so I was deeply sucked in by the time 9:00 rolled around. (my one redeeming activity of the evening was that I got in a 50 minute(!) work-out on the Treadmill while staring at the TV)

I thought maybe I could switch back and forth during commercials – but luck would have it that they seemed to be in commercial at the same time. So that strategy failed…

I think what ultimately swayed me was I needed to be able to make a completely informed decision for our American Idol “pool” at the office the next morning. We are putting a buck on our guess each week for who will get “the boot.” So American Idol won out. Luckily I caught the last 30 min of Dancing after A.I. was over (Pricilla Presley did surprisingly well!).

This week I have to put my dollar on Kristy Lee Cook to go. After being “tested” in this way – even without the “pool” – I realized American Idol would have won out. As I re-read this blog so far I also realized that it has about the same “depth” as most reality shows these days. Apparently, I’m sinking to a new cultural low. Me and about 30 million other people!

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NEW Fabrics in store!

March 14, 2008 in Crafts, Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Stores, Quilting

I’m excited to say that piles of new fabric are arriving and in store for you at Jo-Ann Stores. There are wonderfully springy blues, greens and ivory in both cotton and flannels in “Love Letters” Collection. In fact we whipped up a quick quilt idea for Mother’s Day using these fabrics! (This quilt will be available on our web site on April 1)

For all you pet lovers, you’ll find fun turquoise, orange and browns in “Cat’s Meow” (kitties), and red, gold, and brown on Ivory in “Furry Friends.” (dogs). You can create great Nursery décor and baby friendly projects with two new Juvenile groups called “Kids Talk” (hot, fun colored animals) and “Bumbling Bees” has a great assortment of fresh, cheery greens, blues and pinks in sweet little bees and bugs. You’ll find some great number patterns in this collection too.

We also created a darling baby quilt design using these fabrics that you can download for FREE! I’m starting to see a smattering of some of our Summer Collections trickling in as well. I’ll keep you informed. I’m just so excited about these new fabrics and I’m thrilled with the quality of the color and printing. Hope you love ‘em too!

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These boots are made for walkin'!

March 12, 2008 in Excercise, Well-Being

Right now, I'm beaming with self esteem, because (after a long winter) I went out for my first outdoor walk of the season. The treadmill serves it's purpose - but it's not the same as the great outdoors. I saw some amazing sights this first walk. Amongst still quite significant mounds of snow (6"-18" high), I saw all the classic signs of Spring in Spokane: a lady attempting to garden, a man hosing down his driveway, a teenage boy washing the family car and a girl walking her dog in a sleeveless top.

As I was walking, I was thinking about all the great benefits of walking. At first the obvious comes to mind - it's great for heart health, it helps you lose weight, and it boosts your mental well-being. But if that's not enough to inspire you - you can also sound really healthy to your couch potato friends when you casually work it into conversation that you were out for a brisk walk in the elements yesterday; your neighbors will notice that you didn't blimp-out over the winter; it's 45 minutes that you know you won't have your hand in the cookie jar (unless you sneak them with you in your jacket pocket), and it's virtually a free activity (unless you buy an ipod and numerous books on CD to keep it interesting after your second walk of the season) Guilty!

With all these benefits - it's still a push to get myself out the door. But I'm always SO glad I did, when I'm done. 

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Showin' my art

March 10, 2008 in Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Stores

I was just back in Ohio to present to the JoAnn’s Marketing and Merchant teams some of my collections for next Spring and Summer. It’s quite a preparation! We do a DVD movie that shows the art and product ideas with enhancing and appropriate music. We also create Presentation Boards and mock up some product samples. Amidst a recent snow storm and very chilly temperatures, I presented to an attentive audience at JoAnn’s headquarters. I talked about each theme, color story and why the collections are trend appropriate. This is always stepping out of the box for me. Artists as a lot tend to be “behind the scenes” kind of people. I guess I’m kind of a mix of both – comfortable being tucked away in my art studio and capable of being gregarious on other occasions. I wish I could show you the art and tell you more about the ideas – but I would be “off’d” by the Fabric Mafia if I did.

Anyway, phew……glad it’s done.   

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Quote of the Month

March 5, 2008 in Creativity, Friendship, Quotes

A little Irish in us All
When it comes to seeking good luck, full pockets and light-hearted fun this Irish Blessing applies to us all no matter our nationality or ancestry.

Thanks Kris for our inspiration for the month!

 

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