Another Row Completed from the Row by Row Experience 2015

Well, here's another row from the Row by Row Experience 2015. Last year's theme was "Water" in all its various forms. This kit came from Blaine's Sewing Machine Center in Cranston, RI. While the anchor appears to have a grey background, it is actually on the same light blue background as the bird bath. I completed this row while quilting this weekend with friends at a local hotel. We quilt Friday through Sunday, but we don't spend the night there.

I also put the finishing touches on the mermaid piece on which I have been working and since it now all layered, hopefully, I will be able to quilt it tomorrow.

A Historic Moment

Last night, July 28, 2016, Hillary Clinton, former senator and Secretary of State, accepted her party's nomination in the quest to become our country's forty-fifth president.  When I was a child in the fifties,  I would watch Big Brother Bob Emery, a local Boston TV show for children. At noontime,  children would run to get a glass of milk so that they might join the host in a toast to the President of the United States. I don't remember much about the program, but I do remember the president's framed photo on the wall, the "Hail to the Chief" being played, and the toast. It never occurred to me then that one day we might have a woman president.

As I grew older, this bothered me . . . why didn't we have a woman president?  Certainly, through the years we have had strong, intelligent, capable women of bother political parties who would have been effective leaders.

Now, I am not suggesting today that anyone should vote for Hillary Clinton simply because she is a women; that would do nothing for our country. I am saying that I believe she is, by far, the most qualified person to lead our country into the future.

Normally, I write about quilting,  gardening,  photography,  my travels, and, of course,  Emma, the world's cutest schnauzer, but today I felt compelled to comment on this historic moment.

For those who are weary of politics, don't worry it will be over in just 100 days!!!

Sun Printing - Lessons Learned

This morning when I took Emma for a very short walk before the day's heat set in, we passed a mimosa tree with low branches hanging over the sidewalk. I wondered how they would work in sun printing, so I plucked a few small pieces. 

On the spur of the moment, I grabbed my supplies and headed outside. My foam core board is covered with clear contact paper over which I placed a plastic sheet. Drops of Dye-Na-Flow were scattered across the slightly dampened white fabric. Next I spritzed it with water from a spray bottle and used a foam brush to cause the colors to spread. It was necessary to work very quickly in the heat as I placed random items around the piece.

Lesson 1 Learned: Next time gather items before putting down the paint.

I intended to cut the finished fabric into various small pieces to use in future art quilts, but looking at this photo I should have noticed the shadows being cast. 

Lesson 2 Learned: The items placed on top of the paint need to be absolutely flat.

Was this my first time sun printing? No. Why did I forget what I already knew??? I'm totally blaming it on the heat wave that we have been having. So, my results this morning weren't too successful, but in spite of that, it was a good refresher for me.

The mimosa pieces are pretty good, and I loved the spatula image. I've already trimmed the rims off the two white plastic pieces in the top right for the next time. The small plastic sprocket pieces worked; the other little circular pieces not being flat, didn't.

The good thing is you can always repaint, stamp, or alter any section that doesn't turn out well.

Next step . . . let it dry twenty-four hours then iron it on the reverse side.

Better luck next time . . .   Stay cool.    :-)

Seaweed Stitching

Last night I added seaweed as the finishing touches to the mermaid piece on which I have been working. Here I used two layers of batting to puff up the shell and pink seed beads to suggest a string of pearls. The seaweed is three strands of embroidery floss and some blue/green eyelash yarn.

A couple of years ago, I purchased a bag of twisted yarn pieces thinking I would be able to use it in my art quilts. I cut a few short sections to create some different textured seaweed. I've included this enlarged photo to show how I beaded the floss seaweed. At this point, this piece just needs to be quilted.

Tale of the Mermaid's Tail

Since it has been hot, hot, hot here as it has been all across the country, for the most part I have been staying in the air conditioning and doing some stitching. Today, I gave the mermaid a face using one strand of light blue floss. If you click on the photo, you can see a close up of her fabulous jewels. :-)

The design on the tail was done with gold, metallic floss which was extremely difficult to work with as it kept shredding. The tail was also embellished with beads which do not show up too well in this photo.

Here you can see the bubbles better. They were each made with a clear sequin and a clear seed bead on top.  In person, they really do look like water bubbles.

 I had bought the fabric kit and pattern from the Quilter's Fancy Quilt Shop in Cortland, Ohio. Since I am a crazy quilter, I did not purchase the embellishing kit as I already have quite an assortment of beads, floss, sequins, etc. It has been a fun project to work on and after a bit of seaweed stitching, it will be ready to be quilted.

A Bevy of Bridal Gowns

Today I would like to share with you something enchanting. For the past couple of years, my friend Kathy has been making clothes for American Girl dolls.  She doesn't use store-bought fabric, but rather, fabric with special significance. For example, one woman asked if she could make dresses from some bridesmaids gowns and so she did. They were adorable! Another of Kathy's friends recently asked if she could make doll bride dresses for each of her three granddaughters from her bridal gown which she had worn thirty-three years ago .

As you can see, this lovely dotted swiss gown had yards of lace and ribbon. Not only was Kathy able to make three dresses, but she designed each dress differently. Notice the lace she applied to the sleeve of one gown.

 

A veil accompanies each dress. 

 

Here's a closer look at the front and back of my favorite.

Now, Kathy didn't stop there; she had just enough fabric left to make a dress (a size 4-5) for the oldest granddaughter. She used a piece of lace for the bodice and ribbons to make a headband. There is also a beaded headpiece.  All of these elements came from the original gown. Hopefully, this special dress will be worn in turn by each of the granddaughters as they grow.

Kathy was going to deliver the dresses to her friend this afternoon, and I can only imagine how delighted she must have been. How lucky these little girls are to have such a loving grandmother, and how lucky the grandmother is to have such an incredibly talented seamstress friend.

Thank you, Kathy, for letting me share your photos and wonderful work with my readers.

Vince Gil Concert

Last evening I attended an incredible concert at the South Shore Music Circus in Cohasset.  Vince Gil along with his eight piece band performed well over two hours. He remarked that he has returned to play in Cohasset every summer for thirty-five years. The fact that nearly all 2,300 seats were filled is a testament to his ability as a singer, songwriter, and masterful guitarist. I first saw him there with my brother in the late 90s, again maybe six or seven years ago, and he is as good as he ever was. As would be expected, each member of his band was also outstanding.

For those who have never been to the Music Circus, let me just say it is an awesome place to see a concert as no seat is more than fifty feet from the stage. I remember Martina McBride a few years ago saying what a pleasure it was to perform here. Being used to playing in huge arenas, she thought it was wonderful to actually be able to see the faces of audience members. The performers always seem to get a kick out of the fact that the stage slowly revolves. Yes, it's a great venue, but since it is a tent it is subject to the weather. . . no air conditioning here.  Last night it was like taking a sauna with 2,000 of your closest friends. Hot! Humid! Hot! When Vince introduced the members of his band, he remarked that the drummer was the only smart one as he was wearing shorts. Sure enough, after the intermission folks roared with laughter when Vince came down the aisle also wearing shorts!!!

If you have never been to one of his concerts, I urge you to do so. Those guitars were cranking all night and his voice was strong and true.

The only bad part was that I had to cut short my time at my little cousin's seventh birthday party in the afternoon. I am happy to report that he liked the "fun things" and the books (former English teachers always give books:-) that I picked out for him. Funniest part of all . . . I also gave him a shirt with a character on the front. He took it out of the bag, immediately pealed off the shirt he was wearing, ripped off the tags, and put it on. Successful presents . . .