Saturday, October 24, 2009

A fall thunderstorm

We are certainly having our share of odd weather. It has been pouring since the middle of last night, and just a few minutes ago I heard thunder. The day before yesterday, it was in the 60's but yesterday only in the 40's. I managed to get out and plant a few daffodil bulbs under a tree in the front yard. I can't "naturalize" them since the yard care people just drive over anything in their path. Not really complaining - at least they do it and we don't have to!

I have been busy working on quilts for kids at Camp Agape, a summer respite for kids whose parent or parents are incarcerated. Last year, our guild made a few, and the grandmother of one of the campers came to thank us at our September meeting. She heard about the camp from the president of our guild at the quilt show, looked into it for her granddaughter, and was so pleased that she could go. I think the camp will be receiving quite a few more quilts from our guild this year due to that inspiring grandmother.

Someone donated three garbage bags of scraps to the guild, so I dug a pink floral out and made a quilt around that. It has pink, black, and white scrappy Shoo Fly blocks, sashed in pink, with a pink back. Now I'm working on a more unisex quilt although I hope it will go to a boy. It has colorful (red, yellow, lime green, turquoise...) Friendship Star blocks on a black and white background with black print sashing. The Camp Agape quilts need to be about 35" x 75" which is odd, except that seems to be the size of the camp cots. Kids get to take them home after the camp which is great.

Thursday, I got to meet my Dear Jane Secret Pal from 2007, which was a lot of fun. She and a friend met me at the Shelburne Museum, and we went to a cafe nearby for a long lunch. It really felt as if I had known them forever. It is amazing how one quilt could bring so many people from all over the world together. There are thousands of "Janiacs" out there!

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

Rushing the season!

When I woke up today, the telltale "swish" of tires on wet pavement suggested another rainy day. Just perfect for sewing and reading! In preparation, I got the mopping and vaccuuming downstairs done in the dark. By the time I finished, it was just beginning to get light out. When I glanced out the back windows, I was surprised to see snow streaming down from the sky. We have about 1/4" of an inch of wet stuff out there, which is waaaaay too soon in the season for my taste. This will surely make the leaves that are left on the trees fall down.

Last week, we drove over to Lake Champlain to visit a friend and noticed, despite the rain, that the foliage was at peak. It was a lovely ride, and I decided to drive home via one of my favorite towns, Westford. The views were beautiful. This is indeed a great place to live although this morning's weather has been thinking more seriously about planning a trip south in Jan.-Feb.!

Saturday, October 3, 2009

Meet the "neighbors"

After many months here without someone next door, we finally have a new neighbor. It is good to see lights on there at night. But imagine our surprise when these guys (and gals) started coming to the backyard almost every day! They have grown considerably since we first saw them a couple of months ago. Ungainly, yes, but quite amusing. What's interesting is that the dog doesn't bark at them. A friend told me her dog doesn't bark at them either. Guess they know they should be here.

Yesterday I took quite a few photos of quilt blocks and projects I've been working on lately. I have made about 20 6" blocks for Sylvia's Bridal Sampler (there are about 150 so it will be a while before I make them all, if I ever do). I have also made a couple of class samples for an applique class I'll be teaching this winter. Here are a couple of the little blocks:
These are fun to make but sometimes time-consuming. A 6" Dresden Plate took me 3 days to finish. I am using fabrics that I like in a very random way. I plan to use a tan or other neutral sashing to put them together... someday!