Fall - My AAQI Block Donation

Some time ago SewBuds (another online CQing group I'm in) decided to donate some crazy quilted 9 x 12" quilts for the Make a Donation Quilt project for the Priority American Alzheimer Quilts.  I wanted to help out with an embellished block but just wasn't sure if I'd get around to piecing the block, so sweetheart Dorothy offered to piece the blocks and send them to us to work on.  So here is Dorothy's "naked" block and my embellished block beside it.

Once it was received I knew right away what my theme was going to be and got to work on it.  It's just too bad that I had to fall and thus impede my "sitting/stitching" time and naturally all projects sort of fell behind time.

Since I LOVE FALL so much and the richness of it that was going to be my main thread throughout the block.  I was given a bag of ric rack and spotted this one right away so onto the block it was pinned.  Most of the embroidery was done with size 5 and 8 perle cottons with a few regular embroidery floss embellishments along with the metallic accents.  From my stash of motifs I found this tea-dyed butterfly and decided to add some orange rayon floss for accent and secure it in place too. 

Recently I had picked up some needle felting kits but as yet had not tested them out so thought - this is a great place to do such.  So first I felted the wine leaves in the top left - easy peasy!!!  Then I found some knobby acrylic yarn and managed to do it also but not as easily as the wool fibres so this maple leaf needs some adhesive help from interfacing on the back to keep it anchored.  After this I'd gotten the knack of this technique and felted the purple leaves at the bottom along with the green leaves on the top - getting more artistic in my blending of two colours.

I attempted to do each maple leaf within the fabrics a different technique so the bottom one I just did outline floss embroidery with metallic veins and the upper leaf I "crazily" did French knots for the various coloured speckles within that leaf and outlined this one in chain stitched perle cotton to pop more.  In beside this leaf I decided to hide my copper metallic web and spider and think I succeeded.

Now I was stumped as there were two patches that just called for attention but I was lost as to what they needed.  After a bit I decided to fill one in with chains hopefully giving the impression of seeds blowing in the wind.  Then at a local fabric artists meeting, my friend suggested appliqueing a maple seed in that other patch - well it worked just splendidly!!!  Thank you Pat.

I added a few more minor touch ups on the seams and now I deem it FINISHED!!!  Tomorrow it will be mailed off to Dorothy for the assembly and posting to the AAQI headquarters.

My Fall - Update

As I had deduced after my fall, there is no major breakage as my Dr checked my mobility today (similar to what I did after I got up). If the tailbone has a crack they would not do anything for it anyways so no x-rays to confirm such.

What he does think is that my lower hip area is badly bruised mostly the “sacral nerves” and maybe even the “sciatic” and has prescribed an anti-inflamatory to help relieve some of the pain. So hopefully I’ll not have any adverse effects from this drug (also given for arthritic pain) and it will help over the next two weeks.

He basically said time is needed and didn’t recommend anything special etc. – just to keep up the walking for mobility. I find it takes at least two blocks before that localized pain recedes and then I can enjoy my walk. I might try going out at coffee time around a couple of blocks and see if that helps. Yes at lunch I definitely will continue my 2-3 km walks and just hope the heat and bugs aren't too bad this summer.  Right now it is just lovely out but I'm not one for summer heat or bugs so not sure what I'll do if those arrive!

By the way, this Dr that suggested last year that I lose 50 pounds, didn't even say a thing about my slimmer 20 pounds lighter self!  Dang his hide!!!  He darn well better notice and say something in June when it's checkup time again!!!  LOL!

MPQ Quilt Challenge - update

OKAY, I was so excited when I received the "go ahead" email, that I just had to upload it ASAP and all by itself.

See the person who bought my Meandering Posies was not at the show at closing and did a final phone in bid to seal the deal.  So when the coordinator said that it went to a good home and she'd get a picture of her with the quilt for my files - I was thrilled.  WELL the other day I received it!  So I promptly contacted Dr. April Boyd and received her permission to post this on my blog.  Thank you very much!  And I must say she looks lovely in that matching colour too!

ALSO I checked out Dr Ratings and WOW sounds like Dr. Boyd is a Doctor that is very much a considerate person first and foremost.  That's great to hear!

You can see the previous blog entry here and the first entry here.  Remember to use your BACK arrow to return to the blog entry you were reading.

Tatting Treasures

I'm sure some of you have heard me "whine" about the lack of lovely tatting supplies within our Winnipeg many a time!  Well after today I guess I better button up as I started off my Saturday spectacularly "tatting wise" if not "budget wise"!!!  I must say I wish it was not after such tragic circumstances though.

Recently, a well loved stitcher, Vera Deniset had passed away and after some time a garage sale was set up for today and tomorrow (but I'll stay away me thinks as I've spent enough) so many were able to pick up some of her treasures for keepsakes or like me to use.  Yes I found some tatting patterns, tatting cottons and Jeanette (another stitcher) found me three shuttles and some $25 later I left.  There was much more that I'd have LOVED to pick up but I had to restrain myself and be selective.

So here are my treasure from this garage sale (ranging from sizes 20, 30, 50 and the sand is 60 weight cottons):

And here is an example of one of the patterns from an older book using some of the cotton and one of the shuttles.

And last is a sample of "Allison Tatted Edging" from http://Be-Stitched.com using Yarnplayer's "A Leaf Falls" hand dyed #30 cotton.  Lovely and I will be doing more of this trim for my crazy patch blocks that is for sure.

Quilt Reflections - treasures

Yep, I seem to be doing this in bits and pieces but I can't seem to get it all together to do this in one upload.  Oh well more fun this way wondering what's coming next, right?

I forgot to mention that Pippa Moore had a truck show on Friday evening and it was showchasing her Kitambaa Designs and telling her story about her African adventure in setting up the widows (grandmothers and mothers) into selfsustaining business within their villages.  It was very interesting and if you want more here is the link.

Now here is a pic of my purchases and hopefully I've labelled them correctly!  If not I apologize to the vendor forgotten now.  It was kinda a mad 3-day fun fiesta!!!

MPQ Quilt Reflections Challenge Quilt Results

No I don't have all the quilts and their results, but I'm sure that MPQ has a record if you wish to contact them.  BUT what I do have is the final bids on mine and my sister's quilts!  The quilt (backpack) with the top bid went for $200, then another for $150 and next was mine for $140 and there were three at $130 and the rest ranged from $30-$85 I think, so will have a final total amount raised for the Movement Centre of Manitoba later on.

So here are pics taken on Sunday:

mine went for $140

and Sylvia's went for $50

and here is Sylvia's "Square Dance" that was on display in the Show.

So onto whatever 2012 Quilt Reflections challenge will be!!!

2010 MPQ Quilt Reflections

WOW I can't believe the interest in this year's quilt show and we just about did not have it at all!!!  Yes the Guild was late to the starting block, but I can sure tell you the Committees all did a Wonderful Job!!!  AND to prove it the Choice Auction tickets for all those wonderfully presented baskets of donated goodies were all SOLD OUT (5,000 printed) by noon on Saturday.  I didn't even get any tickets and there's still all day Sunday of the Show to go!!!

BUT the Challenge Quilts this year were stunning and as of Saturday supper, mine and two others sat at $100 and one was at $150, the top bid - WOW!!! 

OMGG, I honestly could not believe the interest in my wall hanging!!! I've been getting lots of compliments on it and to think I just about did not finish it and put it into the show!!! I'm feeling kinda overwhelmed with the compliments and the bidding so far - yes I feel wonderful and proud of it, but yet am dumbfounded as I think there are others that are way more artistic and eye appealing than mine. All I can say is I felt good right from the first, in drafting it up and all the way through to even doing my first attempt at stippling, so I guess it showed! THANK YOU all!!! 

And then Kathryn of "Kathryn's Stitching Studio" paid me the honour of requesting to display some of my crazy quilted projects in her vendor's booth and here is a shot I took with the display board in the background.

Now lets hope that my items in the MPQ Boutique were to someone's liking and sold - that would make my day!!!  And then it's back to the other projects left behind because of the mad dash to finish things up for this show.

MPQ Quilt Reflections Challenge

Sorry it's not finished as yet but I can tell you that I just LOVE it and may have a hard time to hand it over for the Silent Auction for this weekends Quilt Reflections Quilt show at the Canad Inns Polo Park (Friday, Saturday and Sunday).  Yes I still have I'd say half the work to do by Thursday.

Here's a sneak preview!

Monday's Fun!

Even with a three-day migraine type headache I still was able to enjoy the simplicity and practicality of this simple tool.  I know I should have taken the video from start to finish - one day I'll redo it!  But I was too excited to record the action now.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V78EXy19-qI

Okay this is what fun I had yesterday but had to fast hand it over to Michelle as that spinning motion just about did me in (I look a wreck).  I left the other two skeins of crochet cotton with Michelle and she will kindly wind them into a ball for me at her leisure.  What a sweetie she is!

This item was her Mom’s and it took a minute or two to figure out how it assemble the five pieces.  But talk about lickety split for it's value I tell you. I had spent two evenings undoing the skein, placing it over two chairs, trying to control it and winding the cotton into a ball.  Here I’d say it took 15-20 minutes???  WOW eh!

Way too BUSY!!!

I'm feel like I'm that chicken that just got it's head chopped off and flopping around the yard before the preparations for the soup pot!!!  Gross I know but that's how I'm feeling with all the projects to get done this week and running back and forth from the house sitting to my apt to work etc.  PHEWIE!!!

Anyways I've finall finished another tardy project and that's my name badge for the Ravenesque banner for display at the quilt show starting Friday!  I decided to go with the Siamese Beta Fighting Fish (used to have two) and melded the blue and burgandy colours together along with their names and came up with BenFi -----

Then Kathryn (of Kathryn's Stitching Studio) asked if she could display some of my CQing works in her booth at the show - WOW what an honour - and more work added to my growing pile for this show.  BUT I kinda roughly did up some framings and also a display board - not sure what she'll be using but these are the items I'm passing onto her -----

Okay guess it's back to the house and onto the various stitching jobs.  At least the SNOW melted and the sun is shining and hopefully it's much warmer out there.

A Challenge - Showing Results

Well I walked home for lunch yesterday and finally remembered to weigh myself and WOW I’m still losing – guess the walking is helping for sure!!!  I’m now officially down 15.5 pounds from the heaviest that the Dr had recorded back in July 2009 (I thought it was Oct 2008) – so that’s just nine months ago – and that wasn’t the heaviest - that I know.  UGH!!!

Actually I think I’m starting to think differently about food too as I was going for some milk the other day and thought I’ll stop and have a burger or pizza at the mall then after the walk there I thought no pick up more salad on sale and go home and have the left over 3 pieces of mushroom flatbread pizza (it’s yummy) and a big salad and milk!  And you know what - it was very easy to change my mind and walk back to the house and I really enjoyed my supper!  Last year that would not have happened at all!!!

And the fact that I had to buy new pants and they are a SIZE 12 - haven't been there for years!!!  YAHOOIE!!!  This weekend is four days off work so that means four days of 5 km walks in - not just two!!!  Hope the weather cooperates for me to enjoy this!!!

HAPPY EASTER TO ALL!!!