Stitch in Time August 2012

[flying rainbow]

Hi to you all,
I am just back from a weekend up at a friends' farm which is about a 250 mile drive away.. Horrific weather with really heavy rain to drive through on the way up and it turned to sleet across the top of the hills. The road was so wet that the car was aqua planing on bits and I lost traction..time to slow down I thought so it took me ages to do the trip. Luckily the next day was much better and we did lots of crafty things and made some prizes for the Agricultural Society which was great fun. I made more brooches and decorated purses while she did lots of crazy patchwork and in the evening we watched a slide show of all the pictures her husband had taken on his recent trip to China, Singapore, Cambodia and Vietnam. Fantastic shots and I would like to paint them all! Some nice ideas for embroideries too..Such lush colours..
I also went to look at the house some friends and I are renting for a week while we paint in September. It looks lovely and, by a lucky chance, is just across the road from the cultural centre where I will be working.There is lots of aboriginal art on sale up there so looking at that also took some time. Unfortunately I can't afford any but it was good to look at artwork that is so very different to anything I have ever done.
Congratulations on the magazine news Jennifer. How excited you must be! Do you have a link that we can look at to see what you have done?
Hope the roof is all fixed Eva as it is always a pain to have that sort of repair waiting to be fixed and it is rare theses days if a tradesman ever arrives when they say and I always seem to spend days waiting around for them to call back and then organise a day and then more time when they don't get there as arranged...
It was really interesting to read about all your different storage ideas for loads of fabric and you all sound a sight more together than I am.. I still haven't unpacked lots ofboxes in the garage that I brought from the UK over ten years ago.. Some filled with 1920's china that I would love to sell but lack the time and dedication to try and I know there are some full of old curtains that will probably have to fill a few rubbish bins, a canteen of bronze cutlery that was all the rage thirty years ago. As to what else is there? Who knows! Doubtful there are any treasures but I'll bet there are boxes of stuff I have forgotten I had.
I would love to hear about the Indian market Margo. It sounds very exotic from down here and I'll bet you will be glad to have a break from curtain making.. I can't imagine being able to deal with all that yardage and will just stick to my little brooches and cards at the moment although I must admit my oil paintings seem to get bigger every month..
Debby have you tried Tiger Balm on the insect bites? We have loads of insects in the garden, tiny, huge ( UGH!) and nearly all of them bite so I keep a little jar in my gardening bag and find it works wonders.. Not with the really toxic stuff but great on most bites especially mosquitoes.
Good to know you are "working" again Bonnie and I'll bet you are back in full swing soon.
I miss the pictures of the doll's clothes Eva and always look forward to seeing what you do. Such a great talent and you are so prolific..
Have a good week and I'll pop in again soon.
Ruth

[DrDebby]

Well, Eva, we gotta do mundane things too.

Ruth, that all sounds very exciting. (Except the bug thing.) I can't do "tiger balm" because it irritates my skin. But thanks for the info.

I thought I was doing better. But sleeping last night was problematic. Woke up to even more swelling and redness. I took more antihistamines, and iced the arm. (Because now it's not just the wrist, but about halfway to my elbow and into my hand as well. ) So once more, not a lot getting done. The only difference is today, DH is home and he's waiting on me.

[EvaJ]

Poor Debby. That is awful about what one little bug bite will do to you. I hope the venom gets out of your system soon. Have you ever tried Lavender oil. The natural kind. I know it works on itches and even on the spots that the doctor froze on our faces.

Nothing going on around here. Been all afternoon watching the History Channel on tv. No energy but not sleepy so just laid there.

[poochemio]

Debby, sounds like you need to carry an Epi pen or go for a shot when you get stung by bees or wasps. My daughter goes into anaphylactic shock when bit by either of them so she has carried one for years. Ask your doctor.

Indian Market was stone cold awesome! I was kind of worried that I had anticipated it for so many years that it would be a let down (that has happened with other things). Not so, it was more fabulous than my wildest imaginings. There were 1,025 artists in the official market and all sorts of other art and jewelry related shows at hotels and galleries around town. I did a good job at market but only made one other show. There were jewelry booths galore, every thing imaginable and then more of it. Lots of vendors who had old pieces (my favorite really! Though I do like some of the more contemporary pieces too.) sculptors, painters, Kachina carvers, glass, clothing, jewelry, bronzes, jewelry, well you kind of can get the picture. The rows of booths begin on the plaza downtown and sprawl for blocks each way. Since we have booth collected since we were kids it was fabulous for both of us. There was a dance troupe from Alaska there wearing those beautiful button robes and the fabulous wooden masks they carve. We've been in love with those masks for years but never seen them in actual use in a dance, so it was quite thrilling. And exhausting, I was so tired last night but when I actually went to bed I was still so excited from the day that I just couldn't go to sleep. May have been a bit of dehydration going on too, I finally drank a big cold bottle of water and that seemed to help. We did get to meet a member of the Vigil family whose paintings we have been collecting for 4 or 5 years. That was fun, and he gave us a card and invited us to call and visit. He is doing a series of very small paintings, maybe atc size, they are Pueblo dancers in their regalia, usually just a white background, and are highly detailed. I have no room for more of the full sized pieces but I could most assuredly do something with the miniatures. So I definitely see a visit to the studio in the future. The Man's birthday is right around the corner.

So Ruth sounds like you have a fun trip, as well as an interesting drive. You paint in oil, do you do landscapes or still lifes? My oils have been languishing since last summer, it's been inks and watercolors for me since then. Sounds like you saw some cool art there too. I love aboriginal art no matter the country of origin. I did a series of bags, vests and quilts with some fabric my friend brought me back from her trip to Australia some years ago, it was all done from aboriginal paintings. Fun stuff to work with. Ruth if you have stuff that's been in boxes for 10 years there probably are things that will seem like treasures, and other stuff that you will say, hmmmmmm I've lived without this stuff for 10 years what do I need it for now. I promise you I found tons of that stuff when I cleared out the house we had lived in for 25 years. Big house full of lots of stuff, some treasure some utter crap. Still sorting through lots of what we drug along with us, getting rid of or repurposing or making into something new. An interesting, and not always fun journey.

Eva I think the lethargy is from all this heat we've had this summer. I've spent many an afternoon on the couch of late, just trying to stay cool. A fabric cache at the thrift store, always fun. Lots of fiber to play with dressing the dollies you have now until the thrifts have them again, which I feel sure they will.

I did finish my curtains and put them where the other curtains that needed shortening were, took the ones that were up with me to SF and threw them in the wash at the hotel last night, I can't stand working with dirty fabric, serious allergy attack in that for me. So I can shorten them and they are getting the serged rolled hem treatment like the studio curtains got. And I went to the fabric store with a fist full of coupons and am proud to say I only bought thread which was 50% off and a handful of pricey buttons that were on clearance to put on some of my bags I've been messing around with. I'm patting myself on the back here girls, this is huge for me, to only buy what I went in for. I do have loads of fabric from my quilting heavy collecting of fabric days so I'm not fiber deprived or anything. I was perilously low on thread and when you have to drive 50 miles to get more, time to act, plus I try to stock up when the 50 off sale is on anyway. You always have to buy some here and there, but I know what colors I play with and can have a fairly well stocked thread drawer for just about anything I pull out.

Time to think about dinner and end this lengthy tome.

[blestlady]

Oh, Debby, so sorry to hear about your sting! Sounds miserable! Tom was in here with me in the den a week or so ago, and all of a sudden was in the bathroom near the den and he was looking at his lip, he said. He came out and it was huge! He doesnt' even know what stung him but something stung or bit him. Then last year he had that "thing" on his eyebrow that was huge and turned black, and he had sharp pains in his head for weeks after that. I am sure he had a spider bite! His lip went down in an hour or so, though, thankfully.

Not to worry.....I was definitely NOT miserable crocheting the boring shrug! Any crochet (almost) is a happy thing for me, it is just not real challenging. But it is relaxing to crochet on it for awhile, then I can't handle any more. I will finish the dress tonight I think. I interrupted that project to find a bootie pattern that I can make to go with it, only because another internet friend wanted a bootie pattern easy enough for her to do as a new crocheter. So I hunted and hunted for the pattern I used a couple years ago and couldn't find it, then hunted online and found this one, tried it out for her and here is the one I got done today. It's very similar to the other one I made a couple years ago.

[EvaJ]

That is a cute bootie pattern. I haven't made booties in a long time. I haven't been working on baby dolls for a while and that is what I make them for.

Margo, the weekend sounds like fun, fun.

Ruth that was quite the trip but glad everything turned out well and the trip home was better traveling.

Today started to work on a complete wardrobe for the Chatty Cathy doll. Have the robe and pj's almost completed and next will be the dress, coat and hat. I figure maybe that would sell well if I did the whole set. It is from a 1960's pattern.

[DrDebby]

Eva, the Chatty Cathy complete wardrobe sounds like a winner.

Margo, what a fun weekend! I don't go into anaphylaxis with bug bites and stings, just major swelling of the area and sometimes hives on top of that. The only time I have trouble breathing is eating watermelon of all things.

Bonnie, that's a darling little bootie.

Sting site is much better today. It's down to about a 2 inch circle on my wrist. It'll take a couple more days before it's a "normal" size, then a few more days to go away. Since I was doing better, DH wanted to go to WinCo. So, off we went. I did get to shop in JoAnne's. Bought curtain material for the bathroom and webbing for straps on a backpack purse.

[poochemio]

I'm glad your sting is better Debby. Watch out with the curtains Debby, it's like eating potato chips you can't stop at just one! Same with purses I'm afraid, have fun!

What a lucky chatty Cathy doll to have an entire wardrobe made for her by Miss Eva!

Tired and lazy today, I reorganized my thread by colors tossing the latest batch in, should make finding the right color much easier. That's it ladies. Stitching a bit on the couch with my pooch beside me earlier and the sweet sweet cat beside me purring while I type. Back to The Grand and my current purse project. Nightey Night.

[EvaJ]

Today was one of those days where I should not have even gone into the sewing room. After sewing, ripping seams repeated several time, I gave up and have been playing computer games. Tomorrow is another day.

[DrDebby]

Doesn't sound lazy to me, Margo. Sometimes organizing things takes more than doing a project.

Eva, sometimes the dragon wins.

Still on the mend. I've been punching holes in paper and sewing them together. Making a new journal for the cruise. Really should get back to sewing things. Mainly, I need to hem things up. But, making my book first.

[blestlady]

Ok, here's the dress you all made me crochet.



Finished it totally this afternoon. Now to make the matching booties and to finish the set I started yesterday.

Eva, sounded like you needed a day of computer play and rest from the sewing machine.

Tom went with me to a Ben Franklin Craft store I recently discovered in Kingsport. What fun! I actually bought a charcoal drawing tablet and a pack of skinny charcoal sticks, also 2 kinds of blenders. I might actually draw again someday!

[EvaJ]

What a cute little dress. I love it Bonnie. I didn't know tha Ben Franklin had a craft store. I knew they were online because I get an ad every so often in my emails.

All you ladies who draw and paint. I don't do either yet I have charcoal pencils and a drawer full of paint. Why I don't even remember anymore.

[DrDebby]

Bonnie, glad we twisted your arm. That's a cute, cute little dress. You should draw your sunflowers.

Eva, give drawing and painting a go. You never know what you might discover.

Well, this morning was a bust. DH wanted to go cut wood. I packed lunch and water. Grabbed my sketching kit and a dragon to sew. Off we went. We went to a place he cut last year because he remembered there were a few more trees down in the area. We get out there, park the truck in the shade. Mighty guy with his chainsaw walks several yards off the road, fires up the chainsaw, makes one cut and stops. Comes back to the truck. The chain is loose. He forgot to bring the wrench to tighten the chain. We are back home now and he still can't find the wrench. I'm going to work on gluing the spine of my journal and stitching up a black and white dragon. I'm trying something new on this one.

[blestlady]

We went to Warrior's Path park to walk today. Hadn't been since around March I guess. I know it was cold last we walked there. Tom's suggestion, whatta guy.

Glad you like the dress. I charcoaled a tree last night. Just started it, but is was fun to feel some drawing material between my fingers.

Eva, I didn't know Ben Franklin's store was anything but crafts till the one yesterday. It has all sorts of craft stuff, a little bit of decorative (very expensive) stuff like Hobby Lobby, and some groceries and household stuff! Odd. The one in FL was just crafts and I loved it but they shut it down years ago.

Debby, hope DH finds the wrench.

Might crochet some this evening. Might draw. Tomorrow I weigh in at WW. Coming off so slow now. Just a few lbs till I can have free weigh-ins and I'm getting anxious for that. It would be depressing and sometimes I get a little down, peeling off the lbs, but I keep saying, "Look how far you've come, ole girl!".

[EvaJ]

Bonnie, you have done good on your weight. I plateaued and then quit watching what I ate but I have pretty much stayed at the weight I got down too. Would like to lose another 10 pounds but can't see doing it soon.

Ben Franklin was a five and dime store in the same era as Woolworths was. Then they disappeared for several years and came back as a craft store only. I suppose they are now completing with Hobby Lobby and the dollar store and trying different things. I remember when dollar stores first came in and they only had cosmetics, paper products, a few crafts and cheap toys and now they are a mini market of everything.