Of Birds and Wild Flowers

Have you missed me? I've missed you!
We were on a mini vacation: birding in the Smoky Mountains with our favorite guide, Simon Thompson. Of course, we took a few detours and managed to find some outstanding wildflowers, mainly in the Joyce Kilmer Forest. I'll share a few pics with you:

I love the gracefulness of the ferns' fiddleheads:

Here is a lovely Jack-in-the-Pulpit:
Escargots, anyone?
We take this trip every Spring, but normally the Painted Trillium have just about gone by. Our Spring has been on the coolish side this year, so the Painted Trillium greeted us:
The bark of the Silverbell tree is lovely and inspirational:
This is the Trillium Grandiflora:
The only Bloodroot blossom I found......all of the rest had gone by:
Two Barred Owls:
This tree must have had a happy life:

I'll be back with fiberart tomorrow!

PEACE!!!!

Grace

a word of explanation before we get started: I apologize if I've been negligent in reading and commenting on your blog! I am reorganizing my life: no computer time until after dinner (and sometimes dinner is LATE!). I am enjoying my mornings by being more creative and not feeling chained to the internet. Thanks for understanding!

Grace on Tenth:

Remember the cute little piece of copper that C found for me on 10th St in Atlanta a couple of weekends ago? Here is what I've done with it:

It was a lot of fun! I printed the Grace verdigris steeple and the 1st and last verses of Amazing Grace on a scrap piece of hand dyed silk charmeuse, then I quilted it using copper metallic thread. Some copper foil was added, after which I bound the edges with the blanket stitch, using metallic thread and an assortment of glass beads. I've added a few more beads on the surface. It's firmly attached to the copper using some hand-dyed perle cotton and a few more beads.




More Grace?:

I am grappling with another form of Grace this evening! Our daughter and son-in-law's home was broken into for a second time today. It's been almost two years since the first break in. I was initially extremely upset when K called to tell me, and then of course I grew angry, but now I am trying to think of ways in which this type of craziness can be stopped. While I find it very sad that our kids are working so hard to achieve and have what they have, I also find it extemely sad that others don't have what ours do, and have to resort to breaking down doors and windows in order to have these things which they crave. Wouldn't it be a wonderful world if all of us could receive equal educations, that all were inspired and loved like ours, so that we all would want to achieve and not thieve. Like I said, I'm grappling. I'm thankful that nobody got hurt and nothing irreplaceable was taken. I hate the inconvenience it has caused our kids, but I am so thankful that they are OK. Things are just that: things.

PEACE

Calming Down

So, with the onset of the dreaded Shingles (or Shinkles as one of my craftier friends referred to them....and that does add a bit of levity!) I was told to slow it down a bit, take life a little easier....stop and smell the roses a few seconds longer. De-stress. Ahhhhh, but it's so difficult!

C and I just adore baseball, and last year when he read that the Braves AAA farm team was moving home to Atlanta from Richmond, he was one of the first to request season tickets. There's nothing much purer than minor league ball! Last Friday night was opening night at the brand spanking new Gwinnett Stadium, and we were there, along with our friends Bob and Joe. It's a wonderfully intimate park, the food (believe it or not) is pretty good, and our seats are fantastic!



Unfortunately, our G-Braves lost in the home opener! Oh well!!!

Saturday found us chillin' at home, and then off to the youth auction at our Grace Church Gainesville. I'm so very pleased to report that both Amazing Grace 1 and 2 were purchased for handsome sums by good friends of ours! Yayyy for all of us!!!

C, Barker and I hot-footed it down to Midtown for a couple of nights of R&R! Phew!!! Our friends Paul and Linda were in town from PA, so we got together with them from breakfast on Sunday. WOW....we have known them for 30+ years now, and amazingly enough, we ALL look the same! yeah, right! They came back to the condo for coffee after a great breakfast at the Highland Bakery, and we yakked for hours! It was so good to see them!

Then there was the fantabulous annual Midtown Tour of Homes!

we walked,


and we walked


one of our favorite homes on the tour is this one: Stonehurst Place, on Piedmont Avenue:
Our old condo looked directly across the street to it, and now we look down upon it from our highrise. It is a delightful place, and if I didn't have Midtown digs of my own, I would definitely stay there! We also loved touring jewelry designer Mark Edge's vintage home, which was built by Georgia Governor William J. Northen in 1909, and Will Pollock's 1921 Colonial Revival home, which was featured last year on HGTV's Ground Breakers. We walk by these homes with Barker several times each day, so it was fun to see the incredible interiors. It was a lovely afternoon and C and I enjoyed all of the homes...........but we missed a couple because we had tickets to Horizon Theater's new show


Our condo friends Dee and Bill went with us, and we really enjoyed it! Both actresses were extremely talented and very strong. They never slowed down, and we never lost interest. If you haven't seen it and are in the area, please treat yourself!

Then we were off to The Shed in Glenwood Park for a lovely evening meal:

Beet salad with Chevre

Eggplant Lasagna, San Marzano Tomato, Ricotta

Berkshire Pork Schnitzel, Creamed Leeks, Mustard Mash

and the lovely Profiteroles for dessert:


and just one last shot from one of our many Midtown walks over the weekend: the lovely Mahonia:


So, as you can see, I am following Dr's orders and I really have slowed down. It's been a challenge, but I have obeyed!

PEACE!!!

The News from This End

This blog post has two segments to it..........aren't you the lucky ones!!! LOL

Karoda: 1, Judy:: 0

My friend Karoda commented on my last post about Amazing Grace 2 that she thought I could lop off a part of the right side and it would look so much better. (At least that is how I interpreted her comment!). I replied to her privately that the little quilt was done, finished, put to bed, and I was not about to entertain thoughts of unsewing the facing, cutting it down, and resewing it! Welll......................................:










This is how she looks now:














I couldn't stop thinking about what Karoda said, and I also kept thinking about how this is supposed to be a learning process, so I ripped out the right side facing , cut off a couple of inches, and resewed it. NOW, I am realizing that in a perfect world, I would cut off part of the bottom and reface it as well. HOWEVER, that said, time is of the essence, and I have to deliver the little wall hanging tomorrow! So, thanks to everyone for your patience in reading these Amazing Grace posts, for offering so many wonderful and helpful comments, and being so very kind!!!

I've been SCLONCKED!!

C is always using the term 'scloncked' and so the other day (after being married for how many years??) I asked him where it came from as I'd never heard anyone else say that (have you????). He said that his mother used to say it. OK, if either of my sisters-in-law, Carol or Molly, are reading this, I hope that you will comment if you ever heard Margaret say 'scloncked'.
Anyway, I really feel as though I have been scloncked!!
I will make a very long story short: I have SHINGLES!!!
Yep: SCLONCKED!!!! I started feeling a bit odd on Tuesday afternoon, and by Wednesday morning, I just knew that I had Shingles. I made an appointment with my internist immediately and he said he didn't think it was Shingles and he wanted me to have some dental x-rays taken as he thought I might have an abcessed tooth. Well, my mouth was so sore that the thought of putting those cardboard x-ray thingies in there was almost too much for me to bare/bear. This morning 'matters' with the Shingles were worse than yesterday, so I called the Dr back and said you must see me today, as I need the Shingles drugs. He told me I must see the dentist first! Well, ok, I guess I'll play: no x-rays, no drugs! The dentist was very gentle in my very sore mouth............but he agreed that I definitely had Shingles. So, back I went to the Dr........voila: Shingle Drugs! The darned things appear to be emanating from my left ear, and the pain is excruciating at times, but I know in my heart of hearts that all of this will be history by tomorrow!! :-)

PEACE!!!

Amazing Grace 2 ReDo

I have mulled over all of your comments concerning my last week's post about Amazing Grace 2, and thought about several ways in which I could improve it. The wide open upper right hand quadrant really bothered me, so I've fiddled around with several variations, and this is my final answer.

I like it a lot more now, do you? I affixed a piece of white organza in the dove shape to a diamond of crimson hand-dyed organza, and then outlined both in a gold shimmer thread. I like it! I also put just a blush of the crimson paint stick in both the Amazing and Grace boxes. Thanks again for letting me know your thoughts about this piece! I enjoy constructive criticism..........and as Gerrie said, "You asked for it!".

Here are a couple of detail shots:

C and I took a walk to see this exhibit on Saturday afternoon. It was a lovely afternoon for a walk,
but the bad news was that the museum is only open on weekdays! (We scoured the web site for days and hours, but found none!) The good news was that C spotted this lovely piece of copper in the gutter of 10th Street on our return trip! Guess what I'm going to do with it!! Oh, and by the way, haven't I trained him well!!!

I've been admiring all of Elilzabeth's spring flower pictures on her blog. For some reason, I am very much in love with tulips this year! While all of her tulips were al fresco, I wanted to share this lovely pot with you before they destruct. Our friend Barbara brought them as a hostess gift when she joined us for dinner one night last week. Wasn't she thoughtful! They have the most incredible fragrance.

I will miss them when they are gone, HOWEVER I am planning to refrigerate the bulbs over the summer and plant them around my mailbox next Fall. What do you think? Will my plan work?

PEACE

How Can It Be????

It seems like only yesterday!!!!.......that I was giving birth to this darling daughter of ours and then sharing with C in the adventures of raising this awesome child! Where has the time gone?

Today our dear daughter turned 30!...and she was NOT amused when we attempted to tease her about becoming an old lady! It seems like only yesterday that I was turning 30. Do you remember how you celebrated your 30th? I recall that C was out of town, and K was just a toddler, so after I got her settled in bed I poured myself a glass of wine and went down to our boathouse to enjoy the wonderful sunset.


I tried in vain to find a wonderful card for her, but when I couldn't I decided to make one:












I think she liked it...........she is very particular, but she does appreciate it when someone takes the time to do something original for her.

Her gifts???? She is running in a Cancer relay with her company's team in a few weeks and she asked for donations. That was all she wanted for her birthday! Her grandmother and I honored those wishes, but her Daddy gave her a gift certificate to her (current) favorite clothing store.

Her God Parents joined us for an Easter/Birthday luncheon today: smoked ham; roasted asparagus; garlic roasted sweet potato fries; spring mix salad with grape tomatoes, avocado, and hearts of palm with lemon vinaigrette dressing; and chocolate swirl cheesecake for dessert. YUMMMM! Here are our darling daughter and her wonderful, adorable, and oh so amusing husband today at lunch.....and no, he doesn't have a black eye: the lighting was bad and photoshop chose to capture him that way.

PEACE!!!

Easter Greetings

my good friend Barbara sent me this, and has given me permission to share it with you:

The sleepy colors of winter
Fade fast in the dawn of
Spring.
The joy of Easter's promise,
Delivers sweet reason to
Sing.

Mary Magdalene meets the risen Lord in the garden -

from the Mary Magdalene window at Chartres Cathedral

dated early 13th century.

PEACE

Thanks a Million

Thank you, thank you, thank you!
It takes time, thought, and a bit of courage to be as honest as you all were while critiquing my Amazing Grace 2 yesterday. You reaffirmed my thoughts in many ways. I didn't do anything drastic yesterday, in fact I worked on another piece for an hour or two instead. I may not get back to Amazing Grace 2 again until after Easter, but in the meantime, I am muddling the matter. I have faith that I can make it work!

It is a Good Friday!
Warm wishes to you all!

PEACE!!!

Amazing Grace 2

I have just put the finishing touches on my second Amazing Grace quilt for our youth's auction. Once again, the process was very rewarding for me, but I'm not sure that I am quite as pleased with these results as I was with my first "working" piece.

The fabric for this one is Dupioni silk, which I hand dyed. The doves are made from painted Wonder Under which was then adhered to the silk. If I had it to do over again, I would have put the third dove on the upper right hand side, but I found through trial and error that it isn't easy to adhere the painted WU to fabric that is already quilted, and I had already quilted the upper right corner when I decided to add the doves, soooooooooooo................!
I'm not sure how I feel about the bottom of the quilt being in red (that is an iridescent Shiva Paint Stick). The carpet that runs down the center aisle of Grace is that color and has the gold fleur de lis, so I thought I would incorporate that. I'm sure it will make sense to members of the parish when they see it, but artistically it seems to weight down the piece.

Here are a couple of detail shots:

Once again, it was a lot of fun, but I do think that I like my first one better. I would love to hear any and all thoughts on the piece.......as always, my shoulders are broad, so don't worry about offending me. Life is a series of lessons, and I'm just a beginner in this quilt art stuff!

Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind
don't matter and those who matter don't mind. Dr. Seuss

In the Mailbag Plus!

A happy surprise arrived in the mail yesterday! Terri had posted a wonderful bag that she had sewn in some awesome fabrics, so I went to her store's website and ordered some fabrics. Here they are:


I hope to pick up the pattern sometime later this week and then get the bag made shortly! It's going to be fun!










We walked past this lovely iris bud the other evening....I am a total sucker for irises.......are you? Our weather has turned frightfully cold again (freeze warnings for tonight!) and I wonder if this little guy will get to put on a show.






The good news: Shiva Paint Sticks 25% off at my local Utrechts the other day.
The bad news: it's a clearance sale, so they will no longer be carrying them.
I hate that! I love my paint sticks and also love that I can walk to Utrecht from our condo, AND they not only allow Barker inside, but they love on him while I shop! Who could ask for anything more?




And last but certainly not least: I finished my Diagonal Rib socks! woohoo! In fact, they are on my little footers as I write this! Did I mention that it's cold outside? Anyway, they are just as comfy as they look and I'm totally in love with them! Terri from Quilternity told me about this pattern.......thanks again Terri!

PEACE!!!

A Few of the Things I Love

I love early morning walks with my boys.
I love quiet evenings at home.
I love small dinnerparties with friends.
I love breaking bread at home or out with family and friends.
I love solitary days with my art.
I love days with friends and art.

I love this little succulent that sits on my patio. How can something that demands so little give so much pleasure?

Wish I was more like that!

I love this view of sunrise from our livingroom window in Atlanta.
Another day is dawning and it shall be good!

I love this view of springtime in our Gainesville garden.
Some years we aren't so lucky to see the Red Buds, Weeping Cherries, and Dogwoods all in bloom simultaneously.





The weather forecasters are calling for snow tomorrow night!
Can you believe it??????


PEACE!

Amazing Grace

Our church, Grace Church, has an extremely active youth group and every summer they go on a pilgrimage. In order to help pay for this trip, they hold a really wonderful and fun auction in the Spring. I like to donate to this event, and this year I am hoping to give two quilted pieces. This is the first one: "Amazing Grace 1". Why 1? Well, it was my 'working piece': the one in cotton. I painted this piece of cotton, thinking that it portrayed a brilliant evening sky. Our church steeple is very visible all over the downtown area, so I really did want it to show. I was trying out all sorts of new techniques on the cotton, thinking I would perfect them and then use what I liked best on silk. Well, I fell in love with this piece. I hope it will do well in the silent auction.

Here are a few detail pics........I'm going to bore you to tears, but I really,
really do like this piece! I used Jones Tones foil (ordered it by mistake!)
and found it much easier to apply than foils I had previously used. So that was a real plus! I thermofaxed a lot of text (the verses to Amazing Grace) and some came out better than others, but that is why I was trying things out on the cotton! The portions of the text that are not clear just add to the charm!

I also did a lot of horizontal quilting, just lines and lines of it....very soothing, almost Zen-like work!

I took tons of pictures of the church (I shared some with you earlier) and decided to use the old stone work on the chapel as the base of the quilt. I had some cool Madiera thread that I had purchased in a class withCarol Taylor, and that formed the outline of the stones, and then I played around with Shiva Paint Sticks to add the gold to the inside of the stones.
I was very pleased with the effect that was created!

I delivered the little quilt to the display committee at the church this afternoon and I was really pleased with the reception it received!

I'm now working happily and peacefully on it's silk companion....and have a few new twists in it!

GRACE AND PEACE TO ALL!