Summertime...

 My finger is now protected by only a small Bandaid, and it is healing well.

It doesn't hurt and I should be able to remove the bandage in a day or so.

The best thing about being injured was that I was able to focus on 

finishing the instructions for my Summertime Quilt pattern. It is now 

completed, uploaded into my Craftsy shop and available for purchase.

 You can click here to go to the listing.

Today will be an exciting day at Brynwood, but I can't tell you about it

today. I promised Tag that he could share the whole story on Tuesday. 

We're such teases, aren't we?

We hope you have a wonderful Friday.

R.I.P., Laptop...

 As our dear, old friend, Ray Sommers used to say, "Some days it 

just don't go by the book." Today, my friends, was one of those days.

The day started innocently enough. I went to the studio with the intention of

finishing writing my Summertime Quilt pattern. I loaded my DVD into the

player to upload more photographs, only to find that it wouldn't spool up.

To make matters worse, it wouldn't eject either. I was more than a little

frustrated, so I figured that if I restarted the computer, it would behave.

I was wrong.

I've been pampering this for a few months, hoping to limp along for a few

more months. (Remember when I went to see Genius Ben at the Apple store?)

Nothing I did would eject the DVD, and the computer wouldn't boot because it

was trying to read the DVD. I had a "Catch 22" and I started talking to myself.

 If you ever wonder which keyboard keys get the most use, my six year

old MacBook Pro can help answer that question for you. Let's look a

little closer...E...R...A...S...D...F...C...

 M...K...and we have a winner!...N. Can we have a little applause for

the letter "N"? When the computer was on, this key actually just lit

up, with no indication of which letter it was. This old paralegal doesn't

have to actually look at the keyboard to type, so it didn't slow me down,
but the poor keyboard sure looked ever day of its age. Poor thing.

l-r: 13", 2.9 GH NEW MacBook Pro; 6 yr. old 15" MacBook Pro doorstop.

 Handsome and I packed up the laptop, hoping that it was only ill

and not deceased. I really wanted to transfer the information on it

to a newer model. No luck. No Last Rites. No "Goodbye and Thanks".

It's not "mostly dead"...it's "dead dead". No CPR wouldn't help. Dang! 

So, it was a bittersweet day. I purchased a brand new, smaller, lighter

leaner laptop, but I lost most of what I had on my old sweetheart. All

I'll be able to retrieve is what I managed to save on my last backup...

45 days ago. It's the old, "You ought to know better" story. I'll pull up 

my socks, take a deep breath and just do what I have to do. I'll be fine.

After all, I was able to write this post on my new baby, wasn't I?

My old laptop computer will join the ranks of all our previous Apple
"war horses". I may still contact one more individual who might be able
to retrieve the information on its hard drive, but for now, I'll tuck it into
a safe place and get to work on the newest addition to our stable of Apples.

Summertime Progress and a Question...

This is what I've been working on for most of this past week. It's taken a little longer

to write than I thought, but when I finish it, there will actually be two options for 

creating the Summertime Quilt. You'll be able to use either a traditional pieced method 

(cutting your own templates) or you can use paper foundations. It's coming along 

nicely and I'll be ready to upload everything to Craftsy in the next day or so.

Now, my title said that I wanted to ask you a question, so first let me explain.

Recently, I've learned that a number of bloggers have disabled their "comment"

feature. They said that it "frees them up", "saves them time" and allows them to" post

 without pressure". They've also said "no one likes to comment anymore anyway".

Here's my thinking...I like, no LOVE, reading your comments to my posts.

I understand when you read and don't comment, just like I think you understand if

I don't always have the chance to reply to what you've written to me. I always try,

but sometimes the time just gets away from me. You may not hear from me for a

while, but if you're not a "no reply commenter", I really, really try to write back.

I do think your feedback helps motivate me to be a better blogger, finish what I

begin and then actually create more interesting and inspirational projects to share.

So, I'm wondering what you think. 

Do you like that some blogs have disabled their comment feature?

Would you rather be able to leave a comment for the author of a blog?

and

How do you feel about those "word verification" requirements?

(Personally, I dislike them like crazy. I can never figure out what they say

and I find myself not leaving comments rather than dealing with them.)

I know that I'm soliciting replies for this post. Let me say "thanks" in advance.

I'll also write back to each of you that have open reply capabilities.

I just really want to know what you think about the "comment" thing.

I hope you enjoy the rest of your holiday weekend.

I'll be back tomorrow to show you what I else I've been working on.

Quilts, Quilts, Quilts...

My Summertime Quilt is finished. Remember when I began my whole project last summer? It all started with Rebecca Barker's Quiltscape image of the strawberry basket sitting on a quilt.

I contacted her to make sure she hadn't designed this quilt yet and received her blessings to move forward with creating the quilt and pattern when I learned she had not done so.

I had planned to complete it during our summer travels, but had neglected to pack the border fabrics. Finishing it was my first order of business when we returned home. Kathy at Sandy's Quilt Shop did my machine quilting and I added the binding as soon as I got it back.

I'm going to be writing out the pattern in the upcoming weeks so that I can make it available for purchase. I'll be sure to let you know as soon as that process is done.

Last night was our November Guild meeting. I wanted to make at least one doll quilt to donate to the Salvation Army project. I finished this one with cupcakes on the front and lots of color on the reverse.

The women in our Guild were busy this year. Last year we donated over 50 doll quilts. This year, we outdid ourselves with 74 beautiful and unique quilts for the Salvation Army. A representative was at the meeting to accept our gift, and she was very grateful to have them.

One last thing. I am happy to announce that I took Third Place in the Disconnected Piecers Quilt Guild "Paw and Whiskers" challenge. There were lots of gorgeous, whimsical and lifelike projects, and I consider myself fortunate to have received recognition.

More projects tomorrow...

Well, It's Something...

Do you remember when I shared that I was working on this Summertime quilt? I started cutting out my project in April. Waaayyyyy back in April! (You can read about it here if you weren't visiting Brynwood then.)

It all started with Rebecca Barker's beautiful Quiltscapes artwork. It's all her fault! I was so inspired that I decided to design a the pattern for the quilt in Rebecca's painting. (I called and asked her first whether or not she had done that, as she has make patterns of some of the quilts in her designs. She hadn't done this one and was excited at the prospect of me doing it. yay!)

I know that many of my friends were shocked that I didn't finish this quilt in the first month, but I designed this piece as I was sewing it and it just took longer than I ever imagined. On to Plan B.

My intention was to finish this quilt early in our travels on the Flying Cloud, but I realized two major things while we we away. 1) While there's plenty of room in our coach to make individual blocks for a quilt, here isn't enough room to assemble those blocks and add borders to complete it, and 2) You can't do a bloody thing if you forget the border fabric. Yes, my friends. Left it behind in the studio. Phhhhhtt!

I managed to start adding those last green swirl borders yesterday (I also had some other home "stuff" that occupied a significant portion of the rest of my day), but I did make a start re-start.

Today, I'm going to finish the borders, assemble the backing (which I know you'll love!) and take it down to Sandy's Quilt Shop for the long-arm quilting.

When it comes back after Kathy's artistic touch with the long-arm, I'll bind it and then set about making the pattern. I'll then be making this available in my Etsy shop for anyone who might want to make their own Summertime quilt. So there. Not a lot, but it's something. That's progress in my book.

I Need Your Opinion...

As I sat in my studio yesterday, I found myself surrounded by the supplies I use to create quilts, clothing, and all my projects large and small...

Fabrics waiting on bolts and rolls...

arranged on shelves next to ribbons and trims...

 nearly finished projects awaiting final borders. 

A Summertime quilt pattern waiting to be written...

 So many ideas swimming around in my head...

a competition piece due next month; 

a quilt-along in need of a start date;

Christmas projects that can't wait until the last minute;

special things for special people.

So many bloggers lament a writer's block or

hitting a creative wall.

Not me. I've got so much going through my mind,

my only problem is that I just don't know where to start.

I think Taggart has a great idea -

just lie down for a while and expose myself to all the possibilities.

Wait for an "aha!" moment.

For all of you who were interested in the Farmer's Wife Quilt-along

I have a question. I'm going to post a poll at the top of my right sidebar.

Please vote and help me make a decision. 

I'll close the poll on Sunday night.

Thank for helping me out.

I'm going to try to clear the log-jam and accomplish something today.

I'll be back tomorrow to let you know how I fared.

One more important thing...Happy Birthday, #1 Son!

Little Bird, Little Bird...

While I sat reading in our living room yesterday afternoon, I kept seeing the same little wren flying past our big windows. She'd dart from the sill out onto my jasmine bushes and then off into the yard. Soon, I would see her again on top of the jasmine or screen house on her way back toward the house.




After a little while I grabbed my camera because I knew what that meant. I only had to find where she'd chosen to build her nest. That didn't take long. I opened the screen door and went into the courtyard to find that she'd chosen a safe and protected spot behind our storm shutters.

Nothing like showing you a housekeeping job we missed. Upon reviewing my photos, I saw just how much those shutters need to be power washed, but now that task will wait until the nest is empty.
I quietly walked up to the rail for the shutters and peered inside the nest. I was fascinated by her architectural skills! She really put a roof on her abode! The fuzzy stuff near the top was pulled from the trunks of some of our palm trees. I thought I saw something but wasn't positive until I made a little bit of noise.
Immediately, I was rewarded with three tiny mouths waiting for Jenny Wren to return with something for their tummies. Sweet little peeps filled the air as they let her know that they were still hungry.

I didn't want to keep Jenny from her babies, so I retreated to the house. It didn't take long for her to fly back to the nest, feed the little ones and then head out again in search of more food.
Mama's work is never done. I'll leave them alone for a few days and see how long it takes before they start to explore. Then, I'll be back with my camera to share more photos with you.
I also have a great idea for the Summertime quilt. I thought I was finished, but I was wrong. I'm going to add one more border, but it's going to have something fabulous added. I'm hoping to finish it completely by mid-week and then I'll take it over to Kathy.

I'm going to be creating a pattern for the Summertime quilt, which will be available in my etsy shop as soon as it's finished. Don't worry. I'll be sure to let you know when it's ready so you can make your own Summertime quilt!
I'm off with my girlfriend, Krisann, for lunch and a little quilt shop pillaging. She hasn't been to Kathy and Nora's shop yet, so I just have to take her over to see their great fabric selections.

I hope you have something fun planned this week. Nothing like a little time spent creating, or making time for friends. I'll be starting with "girl time". See you tomorrow!

Friday Night Photos...

Yesterday was a beautiful day in south Florida. It was warm, but there was a nice breeze and the sun was shining.

Before we left home for our Friday night date night, I asked Handsome to take a photo of me with my ol' girl, Kes. She doesn't much care for having her picture taken anymore. You can understand...She's greying around the edges, has rounded out a bit, her legs aren't what they used to be - and here our description diverges - she has a few teeth missing!
Like her Uncle Bannor (see photo at the bottom of my right sidebar), she couldn't resist giving Mom a little smooch...
but at her advanced age, believe me, it's not all puppy kisses anymore. I love her just as much as always, but at thirteen and a half years old, it's more "old dog breath" than "puppy breath". (Handsome never misses the funny shots!)

Old dogs are always such sweethearts, and she's no exception. She also has her stodgy, crotchety old girls moments, but either way, I'm so fortunate that we still have her in our lives.
I think I've mentioned that I started growing out my hair last October. I've worn my previously short crop for about nine years and was ready for a change. I thought I'd give y'all a closeup of how I look now...naturally curly hair and all. I'm working on getting it longer, but we'll see how that goes over the summer. My hair is so thick, I tell my girlfriend that it's like wearing a wool cap in hot weather! Plus, I can always cut it short again in the fall if I get tired of taking care of it, right?
Might as well show you the back while we're at it. After taking these photographs, off we went for a nice dinner together and a relaxing evening. A wonderful start to our weekend. I'm finishing my Summertime quilt top today, and who knows where my muse will carry me from there.

I hope that whatever you do today and tomorrow brings you joy. Hug someone you love, and share a smile with a stranger. It can make the world of difference to someone without one.

A Feeling Of Accomplishment...

I spent yesterday in the studio, thoroughly engrossed in the process of assembling the blocks for my Summertime quilt. Every cut mattered, and if I cut a square the wrong direction (which I did when my mind slipped from time to time) I rendered it useless for this project and had to put it off to the side. "Concentration" was the word of the day, but I really made progress.

After the blocks were assembled, I cut 2" wide strips for sashing. I love the soft green swirls that remind me of watermelon rinds. Don't you think it fits in perfectly for my theme?
The green shows up a little "yellower" on my screen, so I'll assume it might on yours, too. The color works really well with the actual blocks and I promise to take a photo outside in daylight when it's all finished.
I'm posting this photo again so that you can see what the inspiration from Rebecca Barker's postcard looked like. I think I've managed to stay pretty true the original as I created this quilt without a pattern. I'd be lyin' if I said I didn't waste a little fabric in the process of calculating and assembling the blocks!
I ended the day with all the sashing completed. Next, I'll add a border or two and then it will be on its way to Kathy for quilting. I have to get in line for her services (she's got room in her schedule for me the end of June), so you won't see my Summertime quilt again until I bind it and it's all finished.

Tomorrow is Silent Friday in honor of Fezzik, so I'll catch up with you on Saturday. I'll be working on my crocheted sweater, so perhaps I'll have some progress to share with you then. Happy creating!

Blame Stephen Donaldson, Please...

Somewhere about twenty five years ago, I read my first book by Stephen Donaldson. It was titled, "The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant: The Unbeliever". It was promoted as a trilogy. Three books. Storyline over. On to the next author. Or so I thought. I was so wrong.

Because I learned of this author around 1985, I found that all three of the original trilogy had already been written and published, enabling me to skate from the end of one story right along to the next. In addition, Mr. D had already begun the second trilogy of the Chronicles, so I could continue the story through to the fifth book. Then, I had to wait for the sixth book to be written. (Sort of the way J.K. Rowling wrote the Harry Potter books. Hurry up and wait - at least a year!)

While I was waiting, I acquired my first dog, a yellow Labrador retriever. Bryn was named after one of the characters in one of those early books. In her third year, she gave birth to her first litter of puppies and I kept a male. I also named Bannor after one of the characters in the Chronicles. Kyra was born in Bryn's second litter, and I think she too was named from one of the Covenant books.

One of the things I love about Stephen Donaldson's books is that I can lose myself in the triumphs and struggles of good over evil in the battles to save The Land. No movie could ever do justice to the images I've created in my mind from the most minute detail to the most vast features he describes about the places that make up their world.

I read the last book in the trilogy when it came out and lamented the end of the series...until very recently. I learned that Donaldson decided that there should be four more books to make up "The Last Chronicles of Thomas Covenant". Wha? No one told me!! Three of the books have already been written. How did I miss that?

So, thanks to Amazon's fast shipping, all three books arrived last week. I couldn't help myself. I thought I'd just read a few chapters and then head back to the studio and work on my Summertime quilt. I really had the best intentions of finishing it over the weekend.

Before I knew it, I'd finished Book One of the final four...and Thomas Covenant (who I believed long dead a few books ago) was riding one of the majestic horses of lore across the plain toward the safety of The Keep - just as the book came to an end. ARGGGH! I was smiling from ear to ear. Yes! He was alive! But, I couldn't possibly stop reading there. I had to start the next book!

I began Sunday with hot coffee and cinnamon rolls - and my nose in "The Fatal Revenant". I managed to crochet for a few hours in the afternoon, but most of the weekend was spent immersed in a book. I was blissfully lost in the stories. Fantasy filled my waking hours and for a while I forgot some of the weight that had been bearing down on me of late. Stephen Donaldson brought Thomas Covenant back to life and together they have again taken me out of myself and plunked me right down in the middle of his struggles. I find myself flying through the pages and enjoying every single second.

So, there you have it. No finished projects. No new projects. No creating in the studio. Nothing to tell you unless you want details from the stories I'm reading. I'll be back in the studio soon, but until then, you know where I'll be. Engrossed in a great book...reading about friends old and new. If you'd like to blame anyone, please blame Stephen Donaldson. The man's a genius!

Note: You may have noticed that there are only five books in the photo (instead of nine - two sets of three and three of the final four). Years after the original two trilogies were printed, Donaldson reprinted the first and second trilogies into a single book for each three. I gave the original books to my niece and purchased the reprints for my library. The Final Chronicles are each in single hardcover books, so I have the three that are already in print and will add the fourth when it comes out in 2013. Dang! 2013. I guess that's good. I can get a lot of projects finished before I'll be able to read the last one.

Squares and Swirls...

This is what the finished granny squares look like for my project. There's a real pile of 'em so far! I just counted number of squares on the inspiration piece and it looks like I'll still need to make 15-20 more! I don't mind, though, because I love the soft pastel colors I'm using.
In case you love these colors, too and would like to use them for a project of your own, I'm using Lily Sugar & Cream cotton yarn. The multi color ball is color number 19016, and the creamy one is color number 01004.
So, I've put all the squares and supplies into a handy basket that I can carry around with me at home. I added my (g) hook and a small pair of scissors and now I'm all set to crochet at night while I sit in my favorite spot.

I had to giggle reading your comments from yesterday's post. I already told you it's not going to be an afghan. So, here's another hint: It's not going to be a shawl either. (hee hee) Tomorrow, I'll reveal what I'm working on. I just can't leave y'all hanging. (Well, I could - but I won't! giggle)
I went back into the studio yesterday and started working on the Summertime quilt again. I had already assembled the long element for the caramel swirl blocks, so I squared up the half square triangles so I can put together those blocks next.

After the caramel swirl blocks are finished, I'll join them with the checkboard blocks to make up the finished blocks. I'd love to have this quilt top finished in time for our guild meeting next Tuesday.

Let's see...If I work on the quilt during the day and the crocheted grannie squares at night...hmmm. I might finish both projects before the end of next week! Let's hope I have the concentration. Setting a goal always helps me. How 'bout you?