Hands

Well, I was very happy to see the photo challenge for this week from Snappyfriends was Hands. I love taking photos of hands and have lots. The photo in my header for instance, is of my friend Mary. I did a whole project for a photography class on her hands while quilting.


This one is of the lady who we buy eggs from occasionally. I hope you like!!

I spent the weekend doing the pincushion, cleaning up other projects and FINALLY addressing Christine...again. I'm closing in on her. She had better be watching out for me.

crocus

I looked out the window at work today and saw the crocus is in bloom. I had to take a quick picture because they're predicting cold and a little snowy this weekend and these babies will be sneezing.















I'm going to start on the pincushion I'm making for an exchange through Foxs Lane and friends. I'll tell about it when it's finished. I have many Michigan ideas for it. Let's hope they translate into a pincushion!

quilt frame, morning glories

I received a post from Louise at Handmade in Gibraltar about the quilt frame. Here it is!

I've suddenly become the owner of two floor quilt frames. This is the first one - it's store bought and quite flimsy ( I know, I don't have the spacer bar on it for the picture) and not wide enough for possessed quilt Christine. I put Christine on so you can see my placement in front of the windows for wonderful lighting. Then last week some neighbors of mine offered one that husband bought at a garage sale so long ago he can't remember which decade it was. We crawled up to his attic above the woodworking shop and wow! it's home made by some loving husband for his quilter wife. It has ratcheted sides so when the quilt is turned it will stay turned. It's quite dusty but after I get it cleaned up it will be used to quilt Christine. Right now I'm still trying to maintain my dominance over her with unsure results.

The trees are already in bud, the robins are back, the pussy willows are in full fluff and look!!! A sprouted morning glory seedling!! I don't do well with seeds but I really, really want morning glories. My sister-in-law has them growing wild with complete neglect and I can't pursuade, cajole or beg them to grow for me. I'll baby these completely.

Sunset

I'm hoping to join Snappyfriends in sharing a photo assignments each week. This week's assignment was sunsets. You don't find them much nicer, awe-inspiring, showstopping, brake squealing than over Lake Michigan. During the summer many a glass of wine is consumed on the bluff overlooking the lake at sunset. I hope this helps me qualify for the group! Check the site, it's awesome!!

quilt frames, reading quilts

I love the mess I make!

Soon there will be a quilt on a floor quilt frame. I've never quilted on one before, I use a hoop and it works well. But in managing Christine I think I need a floor quilt frame. In the span of 3 days I have the offer of two! I'm going to use them both. Christine will be on one and the blue string quilt on the other. My quilt/reading/quiet space is large enough for both, near windows where the light is good and now the spring is coming it will be nice.


I like to buy those fabric books, the kind you sew into pages and stuff. I cut them apart and make 'reading quilts' for my grandchildren. This one was Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer and it was my first. I gave it to Charlie, my grandson for St. Nick's day a couple of years ago. These are easy and fun and the kids love them.

Spring!

Even thought the temperatures were in the high 40's and the sky was brilliant blue and the sun was warm all week, there was just one thing I had to see to confirm that spring it really here. And...
It really is spring...and early, too! I was curious Sunday about just how close we were. I slogged through the mud in the road to the fields across the street. You can see the snowy ditch that turned out to be much deeper than I thought, but after extricating myself from the up-to-my -knees ditch drift, I found the pussy willows were indeed in bloom!!!

THIS is our second sign of spring. When our dairy bar opens, it's a time for celebration among the locals. Friday dessert was ice cream at Sherman's. We debated about making this dinner, as we have at times, but our Mexican restaurant opened for the season, too, so we had dinner there and dessert at Sherman's. The servings are monstrous and we all love it. Sherman's spoils us for any other ice cream parlor. Happy Spring!!

Pysanky eggs!

My daughter and I took a class in Pysanky eggs last Saturday. It was very fun, didn't require a stash of fabric, and provided immediate gratification! Here are some pictures of the process.


Here Lisa is drawing lines with the nifty tool I can't remember the name of. It has bees wax in a teeny funnel and the hot wax flows through the hole of the funnel for drawing lines.

Dipping into yellow is the first dye step

After dying yellow

The next dye color is orange

The next is red - this is after new lines are drawn before each dip into a new color

Now that the colors are on, it's time to get rid of the wax. Carefully holding it near the candle melts the wax and little by little it's wiped off with paper towels.

Ta Da!

Not bad - not great, but not bad!