Lappteknik

2009-11-12T19:55:00.000-08:00

In real life, this casts a shadow like a blue circle, but the photo doesn't show that. Because of the flash?

I watched a QA Workshop on Machine Needle Felting last night. It was very interesting and gave me some ideas for arty projects. I have a needle felting attachment for my Brother 1500, but I've never taken it out of the box. I don't want to switch it over until I finish my current quilting project, but maybe at some point around Christmas/New Year's, I can schedule some play time.

Progress?

2009-11-04T19:00:00.000-08:00

I pressed the rest of the braids last night, but didn't add the ending triangles or trim them. Then I read in the book that you're not supposed to trim the edges until after you sew the separator strips on, to prevent the edges from stretching. Oops! At least I've only trimmed 1/2 of 1 braid. I can sew the triangles on 7 ends tonight, but then I have to clear some space to cut the strips and measure each braid. That may end up being a weekend project.

Fall

2009-11-01T19:03:00.000-08:00

A beautiful fall day, sunny and crisp. I saw two pileated woodpeckers while walking this morning, the first I'd seen in quite awhile. I went back a little later with my camera, but there was no sign of them. You usually hear them, pecking away at a tree or sometimes the side of a house, and then have to look around to spot them. Later I raked leaves and chopped blackberry vines before doing a little more sewing.

I finished the last strips on all the braids. It's a little strange sewing them to just two sides; only one end matches and the other is left hanging loose. But they get trimmed later. I've only done the following steps on one end of one braid so far. First adding the end triangles:

And then trimming the edges to make a straight row.

The time change meant it got dark really early, and it already feels late. How long until spring?

Quilt Day Oct 09

2009-10-26T19:43:00.000-07:00

Saturday was our semi-annual quilting day at Carol's house. Although my UFO list hasn't been getting any smaller, I knew I needed something to work on that was pretty simple and wouldn't require decision-making during the day. After looking through a number of books, I decided to try a French Braid quilt, from the book by Jane Hardy Miller. I started rummaging through fabrics the previous weekend, and by Sunday night had a pretty good idea of my general scheme. Then each night, I tinkered with it some more until I had the color run below.

During the actual day, along with talking with Carol, Melissa, Jan, Jani and Cindy (and snacking), I cut all the braid strips and sewed 8 out of the 1o colors on 2 ends of 4 rows. I had hopes of finishing up the rows on Sunday, but I was on-call, and got called 3 times between 2:30 and 6, so no go.

Nikki's New Cousin

2009-10-18T10:38:00.000-07:00

Nikki and I went to Seattle last night, to see Boo, Evan, David and the new pup, Peco. Nikki's not always good with strange big dogs until she can play with them, but she is very tolerant of puppies. Peco was initially very defensive when this black monster charged in on his new territory, but in a few minutes they were play-wrestling. Here Peco looks innocent enough, while Nikki has a bit of a snarl. Peco is actually pulling on her ear.

Devil-dog.

Again with the ear, and Nikki just seems happy to take the abuse.

These are the calmer moments, when I could actually get a shot without blur. They played for a good hour and a half, providing plenty of amusement while Boo finished up with pie-making. Then we went out to dinner at Bing's in Madison Park. David had been back from the Olympic Peninsula for a few days and hanging with BT, Boo and Evan came home for the weekend to see him and go to a college fair. BT was off in Norway on business.

Fall

2009-10-12T19:09:00.000-07:00

So it was a beautiful fall weekend, clear, sunny, crisp with leaves just starting to change and drop. And, except for walking the dog, I was stuck inside the whole time working. We had a MAJOR project moving into production this weekend, and it was fairly tense. There were a number of small things for me to do or fix, but my team members were carrying most of the load. Still, it was exhausting and I didn't get anything else done. In two weeks, we're having a quilt day again, so I need to start thinking about what to work on there.

Visit

2009-10-05T20:52:00.000-07:00

Oldest nephew David came by yesterday. He had flown back to Seattle Saturday night, took the light rail from SeaTac to Brent's house, and spent the night there. He came over here Sunday afternoon, and we hung out, cooked dinner, talked. We looked at maps and talked about all the places he wants to see between here and San Francisco. I think he was going to head the Olympic Peninsula today, go up to Hurricane Ridge and then out to Neah Bay. Then, who knows? Mount Rainier, Mt St. Helens, Washington and Oregon coasts, Portland, Eugene, Crater Lake, the redwoods...

When I came home from work tonight, the road was partially blocked by a crew taking out a neighbor's driveway. Most people just repave or resurface their driveways, but they were hacking out all the asphalt. And they were working until 8 pm under lights. I wonder what's up with that? That house did have plumbers there quite a bit this summer, including digging in front of the house, so I wonder if they have more extensive problems.

Mail Call

2009-09-26T18:45:00.000-07:00

Look what came in my mail today! This beautiful quilt, 9 Springs, is by Juanita Yeager, who blogs here. She has been doing some downsizing in preparation for moving to Florida, and selling many of her books and quilts. I was lucky enough to purchase this one. Now I have to find a good place to display it. It is heavily quilted, some of which you can see in the larger picture.

Autumn

2009-09-24T20:37:00.000-07:00

The first days of fall have been pretty warm, but it's starting to cool down a bit now. I switched out the bright summer quilts I had hanging in my office for a couple that are a little more seasonable, at least color-wise. One is September Liberty, which I showed here. The other one is Red Fish, from a pattern in Susan Carlson's book, Freestyle Quilts. I thought I would make more fish quilts, but although I've used her collage technique on other designs, I still haven't made more fish.

Eating Together

2009-09-13T10:33:00.000-07:00

Last night I went over to BT's for dinner. Boo and Evan were home for the weekend, and David, who's been staying with them in Mazama, had come too. Their old friend Brent (the other Brent) was there for the weekend, and Joy came for dinner too. So it was a lively crowd of seven. Here Evan is bringing the grilled halibut to the table. It was excellent.

David, the pie-maker, made two fabulous apple pies. Here he's rolling out and shaping the crust.

The two Brents and Joy dig in. We ate on the deck and it was getting fairly dark, so thank goodness the camera flash worked.

The 'other' Brent and Boo.

One of the finished pies. Mmm, tasty! or tight!

Fall Weather

2009-09-07T09:36:00.000-07:00

The weather this Labor Day weekend has been more like November than September. Cool, cloudy, rainy, with occasional gusts of wind. I took Nikki out to walk about 5 last night, and just around the corner saw this:

From a different angle, I could see where a giant branch had broken off the fir tree and taken down the wires. I think it was only the wires leading to that house, but of course they were lying across the street. By this morning, the road was back to normal, but the branch was still there. (I experimented putting little captions within the photos, which you probably can't read or even see unless you click on the picture to enlarge.)

Star Progress

2009-08-29T17:31:00.000-07:00

The background has been added to the star, and I'm liking the way it looks. It's about 50+ inches square, so I couldn't get a picture of the whole thing in the hallway. Now I have to do something about borders. I don't think any of the fabrics already used will work without a lot of fussy cutting, and they are already pretty holey with 16 large diamonds cut out of each. I didn't find anything in my stash to use as background other than this print from the same collection, but that was partly due to the yardage requirements. Perhaps one of the ones where I didn't have enough for background will be just right for a border.

Activity

2009-08-25T21:32:00.000-07:00

Went to see Julie & Julia this weekend with Beth. It's a very enjoyable movie, and we laughed a lot. I remember watching The French Chef as a kid. The odd voice, the theatrical cooking and especially the nonchalant attitude towards mistakes were riveting and quite memorable, although I can't say it actually inspired me to want to cook. The movie, though, at this point in my life, made me want to cook - a little. More than that, I wanted to know more about that period and how she arrived at that point. So Sunday I got one of the two books the movie was based on, Julia Child's My Life in France, and started reading.

Also worked some more on Sassy Star II, and have the background squares and triangles mostly set in. If I finish and it presses out ok, I might have a picture in a day or two. Then I will have to come up with border ideas.

August Updates

2009-08-19T20:37:00.000-07:00

I've been having some Internet problems of late, freezing on a site or not connecting at all. I'm applying some Windows updates tonight, and we'll see if that helps.

Two weekends ago, I made my semi-annual pilgrimage to the Seattle-area IKEA. I had a short list, didn't get anything on it, but did get a new coffee table and CD/DVD tower. To tell the truth, I originally wanted both of those (they're the Leksvik line), but they had disappeared from both the new 2010 catalog and the website, so I thought they were discontinued. I was quite happy to spot them in the store! The coffee table has 6 cubby hole for all the piles of magazines and books I can't seem to diminish. I put it together that Monday night, and it took all evening. I haven't put the other piece together yet, because I have to clear some space first.

This past Saturday I went to see the new Harry Potter movie with my friend Sudha and her daughter Charu. We saw it at the Seattle Center IMAX, with 3D for the first 15 minutes. I thought it was good, better that some of the earlier ones. It does of course leave a lot out, and we spent part of the drive home reminding each other of dredged up bits of back story and explanation.

On Sunday I spent some time sewing on my second Sassaman star, enjoying the perfect weather, and reading Laurie King's latest Mary Russell novel, The Language of Bees.

Heat Wave

2009-08-02T12:25:00.000-07:00

I'm sure everyone knows about the recent heatwave in the Pacific Northwest. It was not an easy week to get through, but by Friday night it was finally cool enough to get a decent night's sleep. It's supposed to hit 90 again today, but since it was cooler last night, it should be bearable.

Yesterday I went to the Busy Bee Quilt Show. The quilt above, which certainly looks blazingly hot, was called Hawaiian Sunrise, by Klota Underwood. She called it her yellow quilt, but I took the picture in honor of my friends who like orange.

The next quilt was just called Asian Wall Hanging, and was made by Laura Collier. It's very simple but made effective use of the prints and panel.

The last one is We Are Family by Gabe Fisher. I thought it was a soothing use of color and pattern. It was difficult to get pictures of the full quilt in some of the larger ones, because of how they were hung. And, although I thought at the time that the signs were too large and intrusive, it turned out that was the only way I could identify the quilts later because the show handout only listed maker names and the quilt numbers, not the quilt names or descriptions. So I have more pictures of quilts by either Judy Irish or Linda Tellesbo, but I can't figure out which ones are which, because I didn't get the sign in my picture.

The Eyes Have It

2009-07-25T13:45:00.000-07:00

A week and a half ago, I had cataract/lens implant surgery on my left eye. Usually cataracts start to develop in your fifties, but don't get large enough to cause problems until your sixties or seventies. However, the retinal surgery I had 2 1/2 years ago (a vitrectomy) has a known side effect of accelerating the development of cataracts. I didn't put two and two together as I started having blurry vision in that eye, and double vision during the winter, but the optometrist took one look in it in the spring and referred me to a opthamologist specializing in cataracts. That entailed a couple of visits (one with and one without contacts) to take every possible measurement of my eye, the curvature, the length inside the eyeball, etc. In addition to the cataract, I had also had the retinal tears and repair, and they kept saying things like extreme myopia and very long eyeball (which is the physical sign of extreme myopia).

All the testing is to determine the lens they put in to replace the one they take out with the cataract. Just like a contact lens, it can correct most vision problems, although not all of them together. They can correct for astigmatism, but not combined with the level of near-sightedness I have. And they can do multi-focal, but not extreme close vision combined with general and far vision. The surgery itself is quick and easy. I had eyedrops to put in several times a day for two days prior. They put dilating and numbing drops in at the surgical center, then the anesthesiologist put in an intravenous sedative. I was still in street clothes, on a rolling bed. They draped a plastic cloth around the rest of my face. I was only aware of bright lights and the surgeon talking, then it was over and the recovery person was giving my brother instructions for the rest of the day. I had an eye shield over that eye all day and night, except for putting drops in every 3 hours. I slept a lot in between those.

By the next morning's followup, I could already tell how much better my vision was. And now I'm getting more used to it. My distance vision is almost perfect, the combined vision with the other eye is really good (no more double vision!). The close vision is blurry; I don't think it's sharp until beyond arms' length, so I definitely need reading glasses. I'm using some drug store ones right now which help, and I will see the optometrist in a month or so for new prescriptions.

Both reading and quilting had gotten to be a strain but now I feel like doing them again!

and finally

2009-07-12T13:07:00.000-07:00

A couple of family pictures. We didn't get any with everyone, but I took these as Ann's family and Jill's family were leaving.

The Swedes: Seb (Emily's boyfriend), Emily, Martin, Mom, Ann, William and Ketil. Looks to me like Ketil is standing on his toes to appear taller than his boys.

The Iowans: Jill, Bob, Mom, David and Annie.

Fish Creek & Peninsula Park

2009-07-11T11:12:00.001-07:00

On the last day of my trip, Mom, Jill and I went to lunch at White Gull Inn in Fish Creek, a favorite of our family. This old Episcopal church is nearby. It had a small but pretty garden in front, surrounded by the stone walls so common all over the County.

This is the Eagle Bluff lighthouse at Peninsula State Park. Mom has worked there giving tours one day a week for years, and is now a substitute.

Peninsula State Park is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year, and is the home to American Folklore Theatre. In all these years, I had never been to that, so on my last night, Jill and I went to see Cheeseheads, the Musical. It was great fun.

More Ephraim

2009-07-08T19:20:00.000-07:00

The Hardy Gallery is a famous landmark. An art gallery inside, boat and tourist graffiti on the outside (encouraged), and located on a jetty that's a popular fishing spot.

Off to the left side, these windsurfers were getting into position for a race. With their transparent sails, they looked like a flock of dragonflies.

The Ephraim horse.

Happy 4th!

2009-07-04T08:11:00.001-07:00

I'm in Door Co. for the Fourth this year, visiting my mom along with the rest of the family. The first few days were cool and cloudy, but yesterday it cleared up and was a beautiful day. Maybe the bonfire we had on the beach the night before drove off the clouds. It was to burn up a lot of dead wood and waste lumber, but we also had s'mores and singing. And I saw my first fireflies in a few years. They seem to live in the grass and rushes at water's edge, as we first spotted them low in the grass. Then they started flying higher. This first picture is of the bluffs at Peninsula State Park and Horseshoe Island from the harbor in Ephraim.

This is also Horseshoe Island, but from a lookout at the park.

This is 'downtown' Ephraim, from the other side of the bay. The first day of the 3 day holiday weekend and the first warm sunny day in over a week brought out the water and boat lovers.

Quilt Inspirations

2009-06-23T21:23:00.001-07:00

I went to a quilt show in Issaquah on Sunday. I was about half-way there when I realized I forgot my camera. Then when I took my normal exit off the highway, the road was almost immediately blocked for some kind of Father's Day festival. The first road was blocked by various firetrucks, including one with a really high crane. I tried to detour around, and got blocked by another closure, this time with antique cars. It seemed to me that if you were going to block off many of the main streets in your town, you would at least provide detour directions for those who unwittingly wandered in. But no.

I did find my way of course, and enjoyed the show sans camera. I found a couple of cute fabrics to buy, and took these pictures later. Owls in a retro 60s style, and Frida Kahlo.

Midsommer Gardens

2009-06-20T21:36:00.001-07:00

Boo called me up this morning and asked if I wanted to go on a garden tour with her. It was called the Secret Gardens of Lake Forest Park. The first one we went to was my favorite. This little garden was on the side of the house. There was a small patio with chaise lounge, table and a bench, all facing this stone sculpture/water feature and tiny pond. A perfect place to relax with a book.

The house was U-shaped, and the gap in the back was filled in with another larger patio and plantings. And there was a wide border in the back of the yard, with a mixture of trees, shrubs and perennials. It had a lush feel without being out of control or feeling like you were lost in a jungle. This is a leaf-shaped concrete birdbath, cradled in a metal tripod that looked like sticks. (For you, Ann)
Another cement water feature, the spout coming from the center stem and the water trickling down the leaf.

More Gardens

2009-06-20T21:25:00.000-07:00

This was just a small area next to the driveway at one of the gardens, but I liked the composition. There's a small birdbath under the light colored evergreen.

This place had a hobby/business of breeding different varieties of Japanese maples. I loved the color of this one, particularly with the sun hitting it and highlighting it in front of a shady background.

This place was overflowing with roses and lilies, but the real centerpiece was this amazing dogwood, a Cornus kousa variety that was about 50 years old. I've never seen one so spectacular.

Afternoon Tea

2009-06-14T18:59:00.000-07:00

My afternoon was spent here, having afternoon tea with old friends Melissa, Julie S, Julie A, and Suellen. Delightful to continue an old tradition and keep up with friends' lives. The Queen Mary's teas have the traditional 3 tier plates, loaded with little goodies. Even though many of them are bite-size, and others only 3 or 4 bites, they are rich and add up. I am so full!

June Flowers

2009-06-13T22:06:00.000-07:00

There are many years in the Seattle area when June is cool, overcast and rainy/drizzly. This is not one of them. We had a lot of rain in May, including some real downpours, but it hasn't rained now since before Memorial Day weekend. I don't remember the exact day, but the weathermen say it's now been about 25 days without measurable precipitation. And the first week in June had highs in the 80s and touching 90, so things are getting dry.

The positive side is that I can be outside and appreciate the flowers currently in bloom, and notice how long the days are. I haven't kept up with the weeds, though. Above there are pink hybrid roses, a mountain ash tree (self-seeded), dark pink roses (a wild rose type), white peonies, and valerian.

This bed on the side of the house has mostly foxglove now, with some poppies and verbascum Southern Charm. I started those from seed many years ago, and through some persistence and some self-seeding, I still have a few here and in another bed. The foxglove were also started from seed, and then spread by means of shaking the dried flower stalks in different areas.

This mock orange bush, while not that attractive to look at, has been filling my front yard with the most heavenly scent for a couple of weeks now. Both the flowers and leaves are starting to get a little brown around the edges, so the blooms probably won't last too much longer.