One thing I love to do is learn. New ideas, new techniques, extensions of older ways - it's all good fodder for my creative soul. :) I treated myself to 10 days of collage play with collage artist Catherine Rains recently and took Collage Kickstart. Mostly I just watched as she demonstrated new ways to make marks on paper and then composed collages with the results. Fun!
Another new thing I think I mentioned before was that my son, Hugh, and I made my grandmother's fruit cake recipe on New Year's Day. Here are photos of the yummy results:
I neglected to take a photo of a cut slice - too busy chowing down. :) Tasted EXACTLY like it was supposed to ... I think this will become a tradition in our family, too. Yum!
I decided that I will sew a little every day this year and so far I've done just that. Here's some proof:
I quilted and bound my mosaic Pink Beach House. Now to find a long ruler to hang it up with - it's destined for the door of my sewing room. :)
My sewing is not necessarily fine art (far from it). :) Last Friday my friends and I met for Stitching Together at Springwater Designs quilt shop here in Columbia (first Fridays are their Open Studio days when anyone can come into the classroom and sew). One of the things I bought that day was a 'new' pattern by Plum Easy for folded triangle stars.
I made the original (I think) stars way back in the late 70s (?) or early 80s when they were popular ... but they were fiddly and I'm not a good enough precisionist to get decent symmetry with my layouts. :) These folks have solved that problem with excellently designed layout patterns. The printed interfacing-weight grids cost about $1.50 or so each here in my area ... but I think they are well worth the layout (I"m not about to sit and mark my own with a compass and ruler!).
Here are the first two I've made (the second is not quite finished yet):
I bound the first one in the traditional way I finish most of my quilts (attached binding, machine sewn). I decided to try a simpler finish on the second one (turning the backing fabric edge to the front). Will see how that looks when I finish it soon.
I follow Australian quilt designer Rachel Daisy who has explored the folded fabric star world pretty extensively. I love the happy energy she puts into her work! Now that I see how to make my stars more symmetric, I might try making one of her quilt designs. :)
I have also been spending time with my brother, Kevin, exploring the local shopping scene. Today we found a new 'junk' store (hmm, deep discounts, assorted stuff from pillows to space heaters to books to kids shoes to ... ) called Ollie's. Kevin actually read one of the fliers that came in his mailbox and decided he wanted to buy himself a new sleeping pillow.
I like to encourage him to be self-directing so I took him to the shop - in an old outlet style mall near the intersection of US1 and MD175. Shopping with Kevin is fun (if I can stay patient) - he's like a five year old (well, MY five year olds:) and wants to examine/touch and evaluate everything that catches his eye. Progress through the store is slow the first time we visit (after that, he remembers where everything is:).
He ended up buying himself not only a new pillow but an electric blanket for his bed, a scented candle (pine/spruce) and a set of thermal underwear. I think he is cold! :) I have shown him how to record his money spent and keep track of his bank account. Time he has more control of his personal life (my parents and other siblings have never allowed him that, far as I can tell). :)
Tomorrow is sewing with Patty and Barbara day ... fun, fun!
:) Linda
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