home from university

I don't think I've ever shown these quilts, the first made in 1996--pattern is from an old book on stars, this one was set into Burgoyne Surrounded blocks. I've made Christmas quilts for the family, choosing fabrics that don't scream "Christmas". My sister was selling her house several years ago during the season and used a bunch of my quilts on the beds for the open house. It took her a while to give them back to me.
The second quilt was a shop hop mystery I made in 2002.
Both quilts are just back from university--Paul is finished being a first year and the contents of his dorm room fill our living room. And the car is gone.

and, johnny depp!

So, along with the coyotes and cougars and deer, the kids are outside right now watching Johnny Depp film a movie!

coyotes and cougars and deer, oh my!

Judy Laquidara has been showing deer in her back yard in the wilds of Missouri.
Last week, here in the middle of Chicago, Seth was playing along the street in front of our house when a deer walked right by him.
Paul had a coyote at school, and there was a cougar a few blocks away.
It was humorous for this farm girl to see two guys on rollerblades using hockey sticks trying to herd the deer until animal control came by and darted it.

fishing

Andy and Seth went fishing this morning, giving me time to finish this crumb pieced top. The blocks are shirt parts and the sashings and borders are from stash. The blocks are four 6 1/2 inch squares put together into 12 inch finished blocks.
I anticipated their catch and bought some ringer rainbow trout.


They did catch and release two 4-inch bluegills.

reunion

A wonderful side benefit of visiting my sisters is I get to reunite with quilts I have given them over the years. My sisters are repositories for quilts I can't quite let go.
This one has family signatures from a reunion in 1996. I was happy to see fabrics I loved again. I remember them well, and it is good to see that some fabric does get used up.
The pattern is a Judy Martin design.

mother's day

My dear mother's annual corsage has been the bane of my sisters' and my lives. We get into trouble with delivery every year. We have guarded optimism for this year.
What doesn't help is our mother's name; Henrietta Dykstra. Why is this a problem? Because in our small home town of 1800 people, there are three Henrietta Dykstras. Yes, three women named Henrietta found three Dykstra men to marry.

This is also the town where if you show up to church on Mother's Day without a corsage, it mean not only your children do not love you, but you were a failure in motherhood in not making them know that showing up sans corsage means this.

Delivery is also a problem in that the town has street names and house numbers, but people don't use them. After several years of dealing with the local florist who the last time brought it to ALL THREE Henriettas, finally getting to our mother the day after Mother's Day, (yes, she was shown to be an unloved mother and a failure) and when we refused to pay, accused us of being very ungrateful in language we were not allowed to use when growing up (although we did hear it from Dad in the barnyard), we started using an out of town florist last year.

Again it made it to the three Henriettas. We even had it listed as Mrs. Leroy Dykstra, and it still made it to the three Henriettas.
Janna is in charge this year. Beth got the abusive phone call two years ago and is still traumatized. (She did end up paying for the too late corsage, only so that Mom wouldn't get a phone call herself.)

old brides

Eve and I were up to Wisconsin this weekend to help my sister Janna who organized a bridal dress review for her church’s 150th anniversary. There were 56 dresses. Should any of you have the hubris to attempt this, make sure you have the women prepare their dresses themselves—we were up way too late steaming and pressing and fretting about mislaying veils and gloves and the occasional loose button. They were from the 1880s to one worn for a wedding last weekend.
The dresses took on an eerie look after a while. My brother-in-law said the deteriorating dresses had “that old bride smell—kind of sour.”
Some of the dresses were worn by their original brides, giving a Miss Havisham effect. Some dresses were so small 12 year olds had to wear them. And they were little 12 year olds!
It was fun to see Janna’s dress again, and our bridesmaids gowns after almost 30 years. My mother made them and they are beautiful.

summer day string quilt

This quilt top was made last year in a very cold unheated attic. It is finally quilted and bound and will be auctioned at our church for Appalachian Service Project funds.
I love this quilt; it has had several intended recipients, I kept changing my mind.
That morning glory print in the border of the detail is one of my all time favorite fabrics--I believe it was an early Hoffman.
And, shadows! We had sun when I photographed it!

streak of lightning

Judy is discussing log cabin sets on Sunshine quilts.
This is my favorite set, Streak of Lightning, made in 1997, I think from a Fons and Porter or American Patchwork magazine.
I've made this set several times.
I have good memories of one made for a colleague of my husband--he came home from work one day to find a gas explosion on his block and his house and several others burned to the ground. The only thing salvaged from his house was a fishing rod. The office had a house shower for him, and he told Andy he really missed a quilt his grandmother had made. I made a log cabin for him, but instead of the red center symbolizing fire in the hearth, I made yellow centers, showing a light in the window. I figured there had been enough fire in this man's life.
Judy talks of making two log cabin blocks a day. I found it very efficient to cut all the pieces, and make all 48 blocks at once, adding a round or two at a sewing session. This spread out the scraps among all the blocks. 48 blocks can be made in just a couple of days.

fairy quilt

This little fairy quilt is for an auction at my church. I love making these, have made many over the years. This fairy fabric was from Michael Miller I believe--it was one of the best fairy fabrics every.

spring is in the air!

No, not by smell or temperature, but by the sight of a pot-hole repair truck on our street--and it isn't even a local election year!
I love this quilt--gets me in a spring mood. The double 4-patch blocks measure 6 inches.

oh mooi de molens en de meisjes

Lucy's shop

Lucy posts a photograph of my daughter, I post one of her shop!
Eve writes:
"I haven't taken picture of Warffum yet but here is Lucy's quilt shop. The building is over 500 years old!!
She teaches classes upstairs."

binding into the night

Eve is on a visit to the Netherlands--she is staying on the vanStraalen farm in the north, near Groningen, where I stayed on a youth exchange in 1977. Our families have sent members back and forth ever since. Eve got to meet Lucy and her family too!
I wanted quilts to send over, and this bargello adapted from Bonnie's instructions was finished about 0200 before Eve left. Lucy got the pink one from the last post.
(blogger's spell check doesn't like "bargello"--it suggests "bordello"!)

finally some finished quilts!

Here is another example of my machine quilting with the serpentine stitch on my Bernina 1530. I call this rivulet style. It is really effective when using a variegated thread. I set the stitch at 3-4 width and 4-5 length and use a walking foot. I choose a line, and guide the quilt, varying my path a bit, for 2 or 3 or 4 passes. In some places the paths are far apart, in others they converge into a tight line.
This is my friend Donna Cook's design--the pattern is for sale. I will put you in contact with her if you want one. It is a small quilt, about 20" by 30"--the smallest piece measures 1/4 inch square!
My mom did the binding. She and dad spent a few days here after taking a cruise through the Panama Canal!

this beautiful city

We awoke this morning to a lovely street scene, and it was so still all day the snow continues to hang on the trees. It has stayed cold enough that the snow covers the slush and pot holes.
Tonight I was at a party along the north branch of the Chicago river, and got the second picture with the Sears Tower in the background.

snow day bargello

I had a snow day Friday and used it to work on my bargello.
Like Bonnie, I am a thrift store plaid shirt fan, and a popular class here is when I have a simple pattern and a plaid exchange. People come with at least 4 whole shirts, I have a table for each shade and have my plaids scattered. People mix and match and come out with a wonderful assortment. I am always amazed at the variety and wonder where those shirts were when I was at the thrift.
My strips were up on the board and l liked how it looked with one set uncut so I left it that way--added an asymmetry to the whole thing.
I am not going to put on borders--"engaging the edge" (a phrase from Weeks Ringle).

Bible Story Theater 2008

Another year of Bible Story Theater, this year celebrating its 30th year at St Pauls UCC in Chicago. This year, it was a review of the past thirty years of productions, called "the wHOLYe Bible". People came from around the country to reprise their roles.


I worked mainly with the "Bookettes". I thought "shopworn chorus girls" in planning their costumes. A wonderful theater person came up with the plan for the sandwichboard Bibles. I had a great millinery shop going with church women making the pillbox hats.


I also worked with the Unclean Spirits. Always fun!


Eve was a John the Baptist groupie, a Beehive. My friend Sharon Sikes made her dress.


The Beehives in rehearsal. We had a parishioner who wore a beehive back in the day help organize the hairdos.


My Seth the Baal worshiper strikes a pose.

fish border

I had this as a stack of blocks for a while, then as the center for another long time until I found this fabulous fish fabric for the border.

black-eyed peas

Happy New Year!
We are eating Black-eyed Peas for luck on New Years Day.
2 lbs. black eyed peas, soaked in cold water overnight, drained and rinsed well and put into my large crock-pot with 4 of the smallest ham hocks I’ve ever seen from the market. I put in some concoction of herbs and spices Seth came up with in his laboratory. Cover with fresh cold water and cooked on high for about 4 1/2 hours. Remove ham hocks, let cool until you can handle them, remove and discard the rind and bones, return meat to pot along with 2 medium sautéed onions. Stir in a 6 oz can of tomato paste. It needed salt—tasted great—I think the good luck associated with Black-eyed Peas is that you know you’ve eaten, must have felt good in the cold days in the past. I'm lucky my family likes peasant food.

Seth found a stone in his peas--no, mom, I didn't sort them carefully. I told Seth it meant he had extra good luck this year.

My other New Year’s tradition is to clean one or two drawers/cupboards in my kitchen each day in January, putting many extraneous things into the good-will box and broken items in the trash. Where do these extra spoons/utensils come from? I may run them by the neighbors. Also, how come in a household where no one drinks coffee do we gain 6-10 mugs a year?