How I became the me I am

this is my life. it is my one time to be me. i want to experience every good thing.”
Maya Angelou quote

I was strolling through Pat Sloan's blog today and found this quote. It hit me rather profoundly. I usually think about others before I think about myself. As I get older, I find myself changing in small ways and evolving in ways I never thought I would. I have always tried just to be me....no pretenses...just me. I find I like things I never did before...colors, foods, fabrics and hobbies long forgotten. I find I look at life differently now. I try not to look to much to the future, but look intensely at the now. I also occasionally look at the past and think how did all those years slip by without me noticing more. I think of my Gram nearly everyday and sometimes I think I miss her more now than when she passed away. I have a need to talk to her, and sometimes I still do, but I would love to hear her responses to some of the things I say. I know she was always proud of me for just who I was...I never had to do things to make her proud...she just was. I miss her humor the most, but I am fortunate in that I inherited her wicked sense of humor. I am fortunate to have many hand written poems done by my Gram. These were mostly written during World War 2 and the things she said would not be considered politically correct today, but I love them just the same. I was fortunate that my Gram loved my husband from the start....my husband had a bad habit of calling really late.....my Gram called him "The Midnight Stranger". My husband also loved my Gram dearly....especially when she made him apple pies!

I can thank my Gram for who I am today, she was with me everyday of my growing up years and shaped me into the person that I have become.......thanks Gram....I miss you dearly.

It's a finish

Today I had an unprecedented day off and took advantage of it by sewing. I finished three wall hangings that have been in my UFO pile forever. The first one above is one I hand embroidered. This is the first time I have hand embroidered in probably 30 years. The black and white fabric came from my friend Mariah and the red polka dot was bought at a yard sale.

This one...I bought just the top from e-bay a very long time ago and did some quilting and added the binding and voila it's finished.
The last one...kinda sucks. I started this while I belonged to a Yahoo sewing group and the woman on the group ended up not being very nice, so I put it away for awhile and finally finished it today.

All in all it was a good sewing day. I cleaned up some messes in my sewing area, made my poor neglected husband a nice dinner and got some sewing done. It amazes me how much I miss it when I don't get a chance to sew.

My crazy quilter friends are very supportive and helped me get through the day with much laugher. I also learned how to add pictures to my blog today in the messages, instead of just to the side of it. So for now it's a finish!

The Mother Load

Anyone who knows me well, knows that I love garage sales and can't resist the urge to stop. This past Sunday, on the way home, my husband and I stopped at a garage sale. There was a lot of junk and some jewelry. I bought a pretty little bracelet for $1 and as we were about to leave, I spotted a huge bag of wool roving for $1.00. I was shocked that the woman was selling, probably about 3 lbs of wool roving for $1.00. I casually asked her if she had anymore. She directed my husband and I to another building next to the one we were in and said there was a few more bags in there. We proceeded to walk to the next building, oh my gosh, we found another 25 bags of roving. Now I was thinking that for a dollar a bag, I had hit the mother load of sales for the day. Well, the woman said we could have all of the bags for FREE!!!! We also found some wool yarn, some raw wool and last but not least a beautiful hand made quilt that we were given as a bonus for taking all the wool "off her hands". Believe me when I say, I could not stuff the bags in the car fast enough, before the woman changed her mind. I will have enough roving to stuff pincushions to my hearts content. I was so excited when I was in the building that I did not take the time to really look around. Needless to say I am going back this week to see if I can find anything else that I might need.

Anett

Talented Friends

I am very fortunate to have many friends. One of the most talented is Mariah. My friend can sew just about anything. She quilts and makes all kinds of things with her embroidery machine. Give her thread and fabric and she can make a project out of it. Mariah has talked me through many projects over the phone and we have laughed until we cried trying to get through them.

Pat in Canada is another very talented lady, who like Mariah, always encourages me to try new things, even though they know I am very reluctant to do it.

Suzanne from Austraila is very talented with wool felt and I bet she can make anything. Her projects are the most wonderful eye candy you ever want to see.

Ru in Las Vegas can quilt like there is no tomorrow. She finishes more projects than any one woman I know. I don't know how she does it.

Karen in Florida is the most amazing quilter. If the pattern calls for stars, you can bet she is going to make it. The points on her quilts are so precise, I still cannot figure out how she does it. It's a talent I have yet to achieve.

There are many other ladies I know who are also extremely talented. All the ladies on the Crazy About Pincushions group at Yahoo are amazing. They can take just about anything and turn it into a pincushion.

I have not had time the last few days to do any crafting, but I am determined to spend at least an hour in my sewing area this evening. I stated to free motion quilt my table runner a few days ago and I would like to get that finished up tonight.

Happy day to everyone who stops by.


Anett

Side Tracked again

Well, I was side tracked this weekend by some fabrics that were calling my name. I needed a new cover for an old Singer machine in a cabinet. I made a runner for it...I have posted a picture. I used all sewing themed fabrics. I bought the "bricks" from Ebay and couldn't figure out what to do with them, but they called on Sunday and I answered the call. I had a really good time working on this little project and I am happy with the result. I am in the process of quilting it....always a challenge for me. I am determined this time to free motion quilt this and see if I can finally master stippling....I am holding out hope, but I am not sure how this will go. I was told over the weekend that I should have more faith in my quilting abilities...she is a good friend! My Chatelaine is still on the design wall, but I have pulled together the rest of what I need to finish it. I hope to do that this evening. I am almost finished with the little hand embroidery I was working on.....I was looking at it last night and I realized how long it has been since I have hand embroidered. It obviously, from my work, is a craft that needs to be done more often than I have over the past few years. The stitching looks like this is my first project and by no means is.....oh well, I guess the old saying of using it or losing it is really true in my case! It was fun and I hope to do better on my next little project.

Anett

Chatelaine

I decided to work on a Châtelaine today...my husband was complaining about needles yesterday as I was working on a hand embroidery project. I have posted a picture of it. I used my EZ Quilter circle cutter to make the neck and then I did a quarter inch seem along it and made some snips so it would lay flat. I haven't finished it quite yet, but it is coming along. Every time I set out on one of these projects that I don't have a clue how to make....I seem to do OK. As usual...no pattern, just made it up as I went along. Time to get ready to go to dinner...more on the Châtelaine tomorrow.


Anett

Scrappy Quilt Again!

I really want to start on this scrappy quilt this weekend. I have been racking my brain all week for an easier way to do this quilt other than one 2.5 inch square at a time. I am always trying to find ways to make easy things easier! I think I am going to do this in 4 strip set sections. It seems an easier way to do it than to cutting a bizillion little squares and sewing them together one at a time. I have to stop at my favorite fabric store...www.fabricdepot.com...like that is going to hurt me, to get some black fabric for the sashing and some to add to the scrappy blocks. I decided to just get a bunch of fabrics out of my stash and from my left overs to try and put this together. I have never attempted a scrappy quilt, but I think this one is going to be an adventure. I am a fairly anal person and most things for me must be done in order, but I am going to try and do this totally by "the feel" of how the fabrics work together. I don't want to follow an order, I just want to sew fabrics together and see what the outcome will be.

My friend Jean and I will be attending a quilt show this weekend, so I will try to get some picutures to post next week. The last quilt show we attended, was probably the worst quilt show I have ever been too.....it should have been called "Bad Memory Quilts "! I have never see so many quilts that just did not work and there was not one that we both said ooooooooooo, I like that. Very sad, but it was still a good day with my friend.

Anett

Scrappy 16 Patch Quilt

I found a really easy beautiful quilt this morning on another blog and I just need to make it. It's called a 16 Patch Scrappy. I have wanted to do a scrappy quilt forever and now I have the perfect, easy pattern. I think I can manage this one without too many errors. I call myself a quilter, but really all of my friends that quilt are really quilters. I have tried on numerous occasions to make various pieced blocks and I have yet to master even one of them Although I am going to keep trying and hope that someday it just clicks. I love to put quilts together, it is the most relaxing thing I do. Thus the reason why I don't do much piecing, as least nothing complicated. I admire all the ladies I know that piece so beautifully. Pat and Ru do applique that is amazing and Karen can make any pattern with stars in it and can piece quilts like no one else I know. These ladies are what I call amazing quilters.

I am still trying to get the hang of this blog thing and someday soon I may figure out how to put it all together.

Happy Day Everyone!