visiting my quilts

I spent a few days traveling to visit my mother, stopping by my sister Beth.
And, checking out the care of quilts of mine living at their houses!

Here is my Aunt Betty (who sewed on a grasshopper green Elna) and my mom (who sewed on a Pfaff 330 that my dad bought for her when he was stationed in Germany).

 

 I love this coop building. We are losing so many of our agricultural buildings. Barn and outbuilding upkeep is expensive. And many coop buildings are being torn down for larger storage facilities, so I was glad to see this one is in good repair.

 Looking north at the home place fields.

 Plum trees in the fencerows at the Hibma place. Ready to blossom--I'm sorry that I missed that by about 2 days.

taking apart a sewing room

My next door neighbor Laurie called today--the children of the neighbors on the other side of them are clearing the house out. When their mother died about 17 years ago they closed the door to her sewing room, not to open it again until today.
Laurie brought many, many boxes and bags to her porch and started calling the neighbors.
Those of us with sewing friends each took about a third of what was left and brought to our own porches.
My friends will be coming tomorrow. Friend Sharon Sikes refers to such finds as "dead women's notions". A macabre but funny term that comes to mind every time I see sewing items at a thrift store.

Anyway, this is my definitely keep pile from Lorraine's stash. She was an avid quilter in the 80's and 90's and included in this pile are some lovely pieces from the first Smithsonian collection. Also some favorite fabrics from my past that I used up and am delighted to be able to add back into my current works. They will be a wonderful reminder of Lorraine who was a dear neighbor who would grow tomatoes in vast quantities so that she could have an excuse to visit all the neighbors on the block and drop off a few every evening in the late summer.  If we weren't home, we would find them on our porches. I was privileged to do some care for her in her dying days.

My quilting small group has discussed that we need to assist each others families when our sewing rooms need to be taken apart. It is an honor to do this duty.