More hodge podge

Before I forget (again), here's some information on the Cass County Missouri Quilt Documentation Project.  The public is invited to attend a FREE  program in the Harrisonville Library at 10 a.m. Sat. June 19 with author Betsy Chutchian who will speak about her book Gone to Texas, featuring diary entries of her gggrandmother who was a quilter, and photos of heritage quilts taken in the Sharp-Hopper Log Cabin.  If you are in the area, please stop by - and if you happen to have quilts made in Cass County, please make the contact so we can get them documented!  Here's the form you need to use.

Another middle of another busy week! I am so confused as to what I am supposed to be doing, where I am supposed to be, who am I?  LOL!

My 30 year old Christmas cactus is confused too. Have you ever seen a blooming Christmas Cactus in May?  It's covered in blooms, so my front porch should be pretty bright for a while.  I wonder if I am supposed to be decorating for the holidays?

Hubby and Mayo the dog have been trying to keep up with the growing grass.  It has rained so much that I think we need to bale it and sell it for fodder.  Just yesterday, I saw about 200 mushrooms growing in the dense parts of the grass in the front yard.  Hey,  I wonder if this is my hint to be growing organic this year in the garden?

Here's a couple of my friends from the Lee's Summit Guild.  They are bound and determined to get their circle quilts completed.  They've fussy cut the centers, and I just LOVE them!  This picture is from April, and I just now found it, waiting in my pending file to post!  Is this a reminder that I am really older and forgetful?  Becky is the sweet gal who made my birthday cake way back last month!

Becky

Cheryl

And last, what's a blog post without a quilt picture?  Here's a beauty from the Kansas City Missouri Machine Quilting Showcase.  

I love the graphic look of this!

Look how dense that quilting is!

Bye Bye Bonnie

As predicted, it was a flurry of a week. After I took Bonnie to the Kaw Valley Guild in Lawrence, KS, I had a few days to get the housework done, and some mystery shopping completed. Then it was back to Lawrence to pick her up again. We did a little antique shopping again, and we had a lot of fun. Bonnie found a few nice things - a quilt for a friend of ours in CA, a baggie of vintage scraps. I found the bargain of the day, though! This is a nice little Singer Spartan sewing machine, that was made August 15,1960 in Elizabeth Port, New Jersey. It's a top loading bobbin, and it sure hums along!

After we got home, my stitch group, The Amazing Quilt Babes all came for dinner (thanks, Hubby!) along with Jennifer Dick, Bonnie's book editor, and my new friend from the guild. We had a nice little show and tell, and laughed the night away.

Here's Vicky's finished birthday quilt that is going to her grandson for his graduation gift. Didn't it turn out just gorgeous?

And Ibby brought her blended quilt that is sooooo Ibby!

Shirlee brought her second time around finished (or just about finished) Babes Flower blocks. She is fighting the binding, but she will soon have it conquered. These are the same blocks as mine, but in a totally different colorway and setting. I LOVE it! (Sorry the quilt is sideways in the picture.)

And although Jennifer isn't in the picture, this is her contribution for the evening. I tried talking her into leaving it with me, since it's in some of my favorite colors (RED!!!), but it went home with her anyway!

We had to say good bye to Bonnie Friday morning, dropping her off at the airport early in the morning. It just hasn't been the same here since she's left. I keep telling Mayo and Clyde that she'll be back in August, and it won't do much good to wait by the door until then. I guess they are just hoping....

And, last, here's what I've been working on these last few days while I've had some time. I am liking the composition a lot! Do you see the trees yet? This is only about 1/3 done to the width I am looking for. There's still a lot of 1.5" squares to be cut and sewn, and then the lace making for the leaves, and the fabric collage surface design. What do you think?

She's Here!

Saturday was the Machine Quilter's Showcase show with the Amazing Quilt Babes. It was a great show, and I'll post pictures another day when I am not so addle brained! Bonnie got here Sunday morning, and I feel like I've been on the run ever since! We had a nice relaxing Sunday afternoon with the grand kids over for dinner, and then Bonnie had some business to attend to on Monday during the day with the Kansas City Star people. After lunch, we stopped at Mom's Old Antiques in just up the road from me, and Bonnie hit the jackpot!

Then it was home for a quick apple snack, then off to Lawrence to her first venue in town.  Of course, along the way, we had to stop for more purple asparagus to bring home.  I always forget to get a picture of my friends and I when they are in town (Margaret!), so while there were extra hands after she got set up, we posed in front of one of her lecture quilts.

Bonnie's lecture and show and tell was so fun.  I stayed for the Kaw Valley guild meeting, said my goodbyes, then headed home.  Bonnie is staying in Lawrence for the daytime guild meeting and teach some classes today and Wednesday.  It took and hour to drive, and it was threatening rain all the way, but I got home safe and sound and dry.  I'll make the return trip on Thursday, of course, stopping along the way for more asparagus!

I got to sleep in today, and decided to work on the commission piece a bit this afternoon while it was quiet in the house.  I think I like where this might be going...stay tuned.

Donna made me do it!

I went to the Machine Quilters Showcase today as a white glover.  With that, I also got in free!  So after the white gloves job, I did some walking around and looking at quilts with my friend Margaret.  We also made a few little purchases.  I didn't buy much - just some fabrics that I hadn't seen before for the new commission piece.  Aren't they nice?

Margaret had to leave, so I went back in to take pictures of some of the quilts, and I kept getting distracted by my guild friends.  It's so nice to hear views of quilts from others.  Sometimes they help me think of different ways of looking at quilts and/or the quilting. During the last half hour I was there, my friend, Donna from the guild (Donna, you know who you are!) caught up with a bunch of us and was talking about her friends at Fabri-Quilt.  Then she opened her bag, and showed us the luscious fat quarter bundles she had just gotten.  So of course, I had to go see them for my self.  P.S.  Fabri-Quilt is here in Kansas City, so what can I say?

This bag is free!

Now, what's in the bag, you ask?  Here they are!

And from the side:

I'll be going back in the morning with the Amazing Quilt Babes.  I wonder if Donna will be there, so I can blame her again?  She even said she does a great job of spending other people's money.  And I second that notion!  LOL!

And so it begins

This is the most recent quilt on my living room wall.  Even though it's been bucketing rain here, I can still surround myself with Spring flowers, right?

I've been commissioned for another piece of work!  YAY!  As always, I begin stumped and go through several variations before I really get there, but I am hoping that this will not be the case here.  So far, I really like the colors I am working with.  The only requirements are the size (45" wide and 32" high), and bright, with red in it.  All but the orangey strips are silk of some sort, so I think it will shimmer.  I don't know for sure, because these strips are going to be cut into 1/5" squares next.  I am shopping later today for more specialty silks, so we'll see if I can add a bit more bright spots here and there.

So now, it's time to get busy and get the house ready for company.  Margaret from Indiana is in town (my friend from Michigan and Cambria retreats)!  We'll be shopping later today after her class at the Machine Quilting Expo.  Hey, Bonnie  Hey Clyde!  Get busy!  There's all those kitty clouds under the furniture to vacuum up!