pushing change... (& giveaway reminder)

As I drove to do my collection of errands this week,

I noticed that many front doors had a wreath hanging.  

Almost all were wreaths of forsythia...

As I noticed more and more doors hanging with forsythia,

what came to mind was
ONE:  there was a forsythia wreath sale that I missed,
and TWO:
the

old wives' tale about the coming of spring,

or more correctly,

the going of winter...

"Three snows after the forsythia bloom"

[My forsythia bush is still just brown twigs... dead-looking brown twigs.

It was in the front yard,

but was moved during some easement construction,

 to the side yard -

regulated to a space between the electric box and propane tank. 

And that area did need some color -

I'm not sure that it does that, brighten a space,

or just draws attention to the yucky green box and big white tank.]

Anyway, back to the wives' tale...and all of those artificial blooms...

"Three snows after the forsythia bloom"

Well, I don't think that the old wives meant an artificial forsythia wreath in bloom, folks!

I can tell that there are a whole lot of people out there ready for some change...
but, way to go with the positive thinking!!!

P.S. don't forget to enter my giveaway by clicking:  HERE for National Quilting Day/Month.

giveaway

This month is National Quilting Month!!!

OK, really it is not the whole month,

but the DAY - the 3rd Saturday of March.

The National Quilt Association declared this Holiday

twenty years ago.

But, you know us quilters,

give us a day and we take a month...

I think it may now be considered

a National Holiday,

don't you??!?

How will you "observe" this holiday???

Take off work?

Spring Clean (or maybe just organize your stash)?

Hit the local Quilt shops on your own little shop hop?

Do a charity project?

I might just do a little of all of the above!

And, I am going to celebrate this holiday

by having a giveaway!!!

I have hinted at this a couple of times, so here goes...

in observance of National Quilting Month,

here's my giveaway...

Three chances at a little something from me to you:

1. a bundle of fabrics (from my collection) used in "A Path to the Civil War"

yep, there's some of that cheddar that makes me drool...

2. a bundle of Fig Tree fabrics "Buttercup"-

so peachy-pretty, (I'm making myself a new apron from this!)...

3. a gadget of some sort...

how about the new Primitive Gatherings

"Itty Bitty Primitive Pinwheel"

ruler/pattern for the cutest littlest twister
(& a fabric kit for the top)...

Leave me a comment on this post,

with which of the three gifts you would choose if you won,

and

tell me how you will celebrate

National Quilting Day or Month. *

The drawing will close at midnight (eastern standard time),

March 17th. 

That's two weeks! GO!

Tell your friends (or not!  :)  .

At least tell them "Happy National Quilting Day or Month from me!

*the fine print:

I will email the winners for their shipping address

and send my gifts just after National Quilting Day.  

Don't forget that I need to get hold of you if you are a winner,

so leave your email if you are a no-reply person.

If I can't get hold of you or you don't respond to my email I will re-draw another winner.

Happy National Quilting Month

(I'm going with month!),

&

Happy Stitching!!

giveaway closed - thanks for entering

on the subject of "thinking we can"

or NOT being told you CAN'T  do something...

This is just a little long, so bear with me, there is a point...and there are pictures to help out :)

My Sweetie knows that I love the texture thing...
so one year (2000) he gave me a gift
to take a wood carving class to carve a bird. 
It was a class that was for an advanced beginner -
I didn't know that advanced beginner part ahead of time...me not ever carving before...anyway,

I rounded up my little dremel tool that I had
to remove paint from window sills,
my dust mask, pencil and paper and headed out to class.

We were given
a piece of paper with a line drawing of the bird
and a "blank" for a life-sized Chickadee.
A "blank" is a chunk of wood in the approximate size and shape of the finished product:

 This is a blank for a tufted titmouse-a bird with a crest on it's head.

 You take the drawing of the bird and somehow transfer these lines to the three dimensional object...starting by drawing center lines
(to help you make the finished bird symmetrical from side to side)
and start slowly taking away the wood down to these lines...

 Then you take away more wood to suggest wings, cheeks and eye sockets, etc.

If you are careful and persistent, you end up with a bird shaped piece of wood that is ready to "burn" in some hard feathers. 
Here is an example of a cardinal that is burnt and mostly feathered (I still need to carve in some more soft feathers around the head and beak; he also needs feet and eyes & to get off that stick and screw!).

Lead feet (& glass eyes)...

 Eventually, you seal and paint.
I painted with Gouache...a water-based acrylic with a matte finish.
THEN...
you need to do some type of habitat for the bird to perch on.

     Brass sheeting is suggested for leaves, brass tubing for branches:

     you cut and sand a little, then use a stylus to press in the veins of the leaves.

So,
back in THAT CLASS ...

I asked the instructor if

I could "do a holly branch".

I didn't notice that he hesitated when answering "yes".

So I started cutting and veining brass leaves
for my holly branch in the snow bank.
Do you know how many leaves are on a small holly branch??? 
Lots...lots more than the 40 that I did!
Then I had to attach the leaves to a "branch" - the little brass tube.
Do you know that when you solder brass to brass, the first piece of brass that you have attached heats up also and falls off when you are soldering the next piece on?  And so on???

HA! -quantity & product downfalls:  hence the instructors' hesitation when he answered!

BUT...
and this is the big BUT...

He didn't say that I couldn't.

And because I thought that I could,

even in my first woodcarving experience,

I DID!!!,

So here is my very first woodcarving:

A life-sized Chickadee on a holly branch in the snow

Oh, the things you can do

if you Think You Can...

so, my point/life lesson...

believe that you can

before you start

and you will.

ps.  If you have been following this blog,
this was my Great-Grandma B's "learn something new promise, circa 2000"

What will you think you can do today??

week four on "Aurelia's journey"

Three more twelve-inch blocks on

"my journey"

to the 150th anniversary of the start of the Civil War...

Bear Paw:

 

House:

Four Star:

I really like all most of these blocks, too. 

The Bear Paw is a little "angry" looking...

(thanks, D~~~~, you have me thinking this now, too). 

Don't know if it's all of the points

or the combination of the points along with the color scheme of the block;

anyway, three more blocks down.

  

Next in the "A Path to the Civil War" book

is the applique dog block. 

It, too, is a twelve inch block,

so a really big dog (!)...

I'm thinking I will do something other than the big dog*.

Don't know what yet, but to me, the dog just doesn't "go".

Now, the history lesson:

Who would've guessed that
what started as 
a newspaper feature series for about a year (1851-1852)/
later collected to become 
the book
"Uncle Tom's Cabin", 
written by Harriet Beecher Stowe,
would have such an impact on the
United States sentiment about slavery (even having an international effect).

Ms. Beecher was born in Connecticut in 1811,
married Reverend Stowe to become Mrs. Beecher-Stowe, 
and moved to southern Ohio* in 1832,
where she taught at a school for former slave children.

About the same time as the passing of the Fugitive Slave act,
Mrs. Stowe's loss of one of her children (1849),
to the cholera epidemic made her feel for others who had also lost a child - 
much like a slave who had a child torn from their arms by bounty hunters.  

Mrs. Stowe portrayed her feelings
of loss and grief
in her story of a devout slave,
Uncle Tom,
 and she put a voice to the abuse, suffering and even death 
of slaves in the United States at this time in history.

By 1856,
2,000,000
(yes, that's TWO MILLION)
of her books had sold. 
The outraged southerners proclaimed that the book
was an exaggeration of the slaves abuse and plight.
Mrs. Stowe responded by giving newspapers documentation of the abuse in the South. 
The response was also strong in England. 
So much so, that
the British declined
to aid the South 
when the War started.

*Maybe I will do my own block-- something to tie in MY family history of the southern-Ohio Rankin House.  Just thinkin'...

meandering

more chances to meander:

I quilted a twisty, snaky, wavy, meandering line on this,

and the borders I quilted with snakes(!)

as the border was a fun, snake fabric

(sorry the pic is a little dark, wish you could see the snakes in the border better).

This is Joell's, from a mystery night, I think;

and she is just cranking them out!

Another great finish  (and I'm still just a little jealous on all of her finishes)!

Next up is a table runner by Pat:

She is a new quilter and trying her hand at a couple of small pieces, hence the table runner.  It finished at 17" by 40";

I quilted it using the "vintage" stitch from my

Sashiko machine (heart, heart).

And, she even did a prairie point edge!

I love it when we (the collective we)

do things as beginners because we THINK WE CAN!

What will you do for your next project?

houses...& dreams

We recently traveled from Ohio and went East...

We drove around some of the old villages and seaports...

Houses in Wickford, RI, from the late 1700's

to newly built homes along the rural by-ways.

I confirmed that I love architecture...

almost like quilt-making...

all of those finishing touches that make a house a home.

I have just a few pics of houses (and melting snow) from our travels:

The house where my Daughter and S-I-L live...

the square box house- very efficient and cozy:

They live on an island near Narraganset, Rhode Island, and you can't tell from this pic, but the winds have blown the snow up to the front and side doors so you can only get out by climbing out the side window and THEN shoveling!  What fun, huh?! 

My S-I-L is past tired of shoveling!

From southern RI, while we were out - we traveled up to the Adirondacks and visited friends who go cross-country skiing for a couple of months every winter, and this is where they stay:

 About the same size house as above, but a second story added for more sleeping area, with the snow piled all to one spot -right in front of the house.  Also very efficient and cozy.  I love the metal roof, with the melting snow and ice slides, the sounds of spring coming!

Lastly,

I found a house that I could have

 all of you 

over at the same time and we could

RETREAT 

all spring, summer, and autumn!

Check it out:

It's near Green Hill Beach, in southern Rhode Island,

& I don't know whose this place is, or any particulars about it,

but Sweetie agreed:

Perfect Quilting House. 

It wasn't for sale, nor could I afford it if it was,

but dreaming is good, isn't it?

Great visit and travels, but,

OK, back to work --

we are back in Ohio-

the sun is shining and the snow is mostly melted. 

I know there's still a week of February left,

so hopefully some more snow coming to finish up the winter...

and I can sit in MY house

and be cozy and hear the season getting ready to change.

snow and dreams...

Abe's logs

I LOVE log cabin blocks...

and I LOVE this little goody...only 11" x 14".

It is Abe's Log Cabin

using all one inch cut pieces!!!

from the Fit to Frame series: Set Twelve, by Lori Smith.

I used all reproduction fabrics and then hand quilted it with the

"Utility Stitch" ...aka the Big Stitch and a

Valdani floss-size 12 #O545

The color of this floss reminds me of santa's beard...

I did it as a sample for an upcoming class I'm leading

at Always In Stitches here in Ohio.

Join me if you can!

Happy President's Day

and keep on stitching!