Black Friday

Today, Black Friday, will not be spent shopping.  Although I’d like to say my holiday shopping is done, I’d be lying….. I’ve not even started yet.  But I just don’t understand, in the height of flue season, when our natural immunity is low, to subject ourselves to crowds and crowds of people, all hoping to get that elusive (and in limited quantity) deal of a savings.

Hmmm, anti-American?   Probably not, just realistic…….. so what will I spend my Black Friday doing?    Why quilting of course!!!!!  I’m still working on the next applique custom in the line-up.  It would have been done, but I totally admit to taking Thanksgiving off and spending it with the DH.

Although I didn’t spend the entire day away from fabric…… that is so hard for me to do….. I did get  a start on this piece:

Isn’t that pretty?   That’s from a pattern by Vickie Clontz called “Way Back Home”, and is the center section only.  You can find the pattern here on her website.  Vickie works in wool felts, which I don’t.  But I hand-dye fabrics for sale at local shows, and decided to make this sample in my hand-dyes, with her pattern.   It seemed a natural to do as we’ll both be vending at the “Quilting and Needlearts Extravaganza”  on January 29 and 30th in Statesville NC.  For a complete list of vendors, click here

Okay, off to the studio for a bit while DH is outside working on the landscape and before Little Bear has his post-op checkup at the vets.

However you spend your Black Friday, enjoy the day, and every moment of it……. I will, I’ll be in the studio!

A little quilting, a little color

Yesterday my day was filled with quilting and color.  I was quilting on a red and white quilt with a solid white backing, and dyeing fabrics with lots of color.

And I managed to do both without getting either on the other!  (good thing!)

The quilt is now ready to go back to the customer.  These are pics of the back as I was taking it off the machine:

Which reminds me, I need to click on over to Backside Fabrics and purchase a backing for a quilt I have coming up next week.

As for the dyeing…..well, I always enjoy a dye day!  There is something almost magical about the changing of a white cloth into a colored, textured piece of cloth.

Today has mostly been spent in the office, doing paperwork.  Tonight I’ll be doing a little bit of unsewing on a customer quilt that I am just not totally happy with the results (yes I do that if I’m not happy with it…..my customers deserve the best I can do)….and I’ll also be spending some time pressing out these dyes.

Hmmm, maybe tonight should be a night I turn on the television?  Then again……………..

Heat, dew, and bowls

Isn’t that a strange title, but that’s what’s on my mind this morning.

Listening to the weatherman on the late news last night, I heard him say the predicted heat index for today will be 107!  Now I don’t think it’s going to get “that” warm (hear that noise, that’s the sound of my being an ostrich and burying my head in the sand!).   But, there are signs of it being pretty warm (alright downright hot and humid) today.

First sign, at 8:30 this morning it was already 80 degrees!

Second sign, heavy dew on the plants:

Of course the heat and humidity we have is causing all sorts of sprouting to take place:

(that’s bird seed in the holes on the feeder platform)

All this brings me to the conclsion that maybe it will be hot today!  Hence, after a few chores this morning, I shall spend my day in the studio.

And speaking of the studio, there are a few new pieces under works, which I’ll show at a later date.

Yesterday I delivered the little wholecloth sample to Quilter’s Loft for the class I’ll be teaching this fall.

And I’ve gotten a few fabric bowls done in the last few days:

This one was all done with my hand-dyed fabrics and yarns.

The next two snippets are of completely commercial fabrics and yarns:

All three of these bowls were done using Isacord embroidery thread.  And while I love it’s sheen and the way it handles in the Bernina, I would really like to find a thread with the same weight and sheen, and yet variegated!  Any suggestions?
Well, I’m off now to find more coffee and rethink the days plans….it really might be just a wee bit too hot out there to venture outside much!