Beautiful Season

This is truly the beautiful season. Everything is in bloom and the air is filled with the sweet scent of spring flowers. My lilac tree is just beautiful this year. I love this color of purple. Just glancing across the yard and seeing this tree in full bloom is relaxing to me, then the scent hits my nose and fills my head with memories from years gone too swiftly. It's an escape I need right now, as this is also the moving season for my family. The past couple days, my heart has been heavy with emotion. My son will be leaving the nest. It's comforting to know that both DH and I have taught him things he will need to know on his own. He is taking my love of cooking and his Dad's work ethics. He's got talent in storytelling and writing. He has the tools to succeed, yet in these uncertain times, I do worry.

Since I have been helping my son pack out, I haven't had time for myself. There are so many projects I would like to start and finish. However, it will have to wait until after we move.
Germany has been a lovely experience. My German language skills are minimal after 4 years. I tried hard, but it just didn't sink in good enough to carry on a conversation.
Gutentag - good day (or hello)
Danke - thank you
Bitte - please
Ich mawkta ein mal schnitzel mit pommes, bitte - I would like 1 schnitzel with fries, please
Ich ben Americaneran - I am American (female)
Ich ben Americaner - I am American (male)
tsooes (choose)- informal good by
Auf Wiedersahen - formal good by
These basic words and phrases helped, but I guess I didn't feel confident enough with it and would usually end up saying this along with a desperate expression on my face:
Bitte, sprecken zie English? - please, speak you English?
Most of the time I would get a smile or laugh from them and they would break out with way more knowlege of English than I could ever know of the German language.

My son had 2 years of German in high school and 2 semesters of German here, so his skills are better than mine by far. When you get a doctor bill in your post box with a payment slip to take to your bank that throws me off a lot. I couldn't read the bills at all. The telephone company was the worst by far. I could never get anyone from customer service who could speak English.
Finally, we had to find someone at work who knew enough German to help us. The post here really needs a liason to work with everyone. If there is one around, we never knew it.

Maybe there's a quilt idea in here somewhere. Will have to dwell on it and maybe get my sketchbook out. Have a wonderful day. ;o)

Snow? Not Now

Look what we woke up to this morning! SNOW and it keeps coming. My tulips are now buried under a thick blanket of fresh snow. Why didn't we get this in January or February? Nature has waited until Spring to give it to us here in Europe. Oh well, it won't last and we do need the precipitation. Sigh..... Good day to stay in and get some work done.

Yesterday I went shopping and had to buy some cheery flowers for my living room. The flower shop had mums, tulips, Gerber Daisy's, and lots of bouquets with springy flowers, but when I laid my eyes on these roses, I just couldn't resist. They are so beautiful. Roses are my absolute favorite flower and there isn't one variety I don't like.

In my country phase, I made a queen size quilt for my son's bed. This was about 9 years ago. He's used it everyday since then and I've washed it probably a dozen times. The binding is the plaid fabrics you used to see a lot of. They are a looser woven fabric compared to the quilting cottons today. Well, I should have known this would happen, but it's showing a lot of wear and tear. So, someday soon I will have to take the binding off and replace it with something else. Probably a solid double bias cut binding as the corners are rounded.

Here's the back of the quilt.
Here's a couple pictures of the tears.

Now this is only a couple edges. I would have to say that 80% of the binding is still in excellent condition, however, this is disheartening and I will have to fix it. My lesson for today, do not use loosely woven fabrics for the binding even if they are a double thickness. :o)

Spring has sprung

Oh my gosh, it's been forever since I posted something! UUGGGHH! I feel bad as I have nothing to show for my being MIA either! Well, let me tell you that I have been busy with

packing boxes up, inventorying everything, and tying up those loose ends before our move.

Moving is extremely time consuming, however, I would like to darken my sewing room door
a few more times before that inevitable day when it all gets packed into boxes, then crates and shipped off to the final destination. Such a process!

This is a wall quilt I made a couple years ago from scraps I had lingering in my scrap basket. I really like the way this turned out and now am sorry I didn't make it into a lap size quilt.

Here's another wall quilt I love. It was a challenge for me with all the set in seams. Go here http://www.jinnybeyer.com/ to visit Jinny Beyer's site. However, I don't think she has this pattern there. You can find out how to recreate it in her book; "Designing Tessellations". Wonderful book that I don't spend enough time with. I'm not sure if it is out of print. Anyway, here it is:

The sun is finally shining today. Even if it is still chilly, the sun is a much welcome sight. The daffodils and tulips are blooming here. The fruit trees and forsythias are in full bloom as well.

The picture at the top is from last May. I love taking pictures of flowers and trying to recreate them in a quilt. Here is a quilt I made a couple years back for a family auction, so everything in it is family related.

And a close-up of the center.....oops! kinda dark, sorry. It it a bright blue and white quilt. I loved the dark navy fabrics in this with the blue and white toile.

The pansy's in the center are appliqued and I used fabric pens to paint on the centers. One day I'll try this again and keep it for myself. I am a firm believer in making quilts and samples to keep. My sample book is heaving, so I will have to make another one one day.

Here is another family quilt I made for my mother this time. She loves red and white. Again, sorry it's so dark. I didn't get a very good picture of this one before sending it off to her 3 Valentine days ago. I have been to her house since, and she did have it hanging.....do you ever wonder how appreciative people who receive your blood, sweat and tears of a quilt you made just for them is treated? Most gifts I give for weddings or graduations or birthdays....I don't care what they do with "they know where the garbage is" if they don't like it and I don't mind (now this is a gift I am talking about like a coffee maker). BUT, if I make a quilt.....that's a different story all together. I don't make quilts willy-nilly. They take a tremendous amount of time and patience (and a lot of other things, I assure you), of course you all know this. So I really care if it is thrown into a closet on the floor, or is being used to sop up water from a leaky clothes washer. If anyone gets a quilt from me, I won't say it, but you better appreciate it. Otherwise, they won't get another gift from me.......ever. They could very well hang it only while I'm around and neatly and properly put it away when I leave, that's fine and that makes me happy....thrilled as a matter of fact. OK, so I said my peace!

Moving on...... I just finished Robin McGraw's book, yes, Dr. Phil's wife. It's titled "Inside My Heart". It's pretty good, however, I think a lot of it is, DUH, no kidding....who is she trying to get through to here, young 20 somethings who have just gotten involved with a significant other? She repeats herself quite a bit, too and I find that very irritating. My son is reading "The Mist" by Stephen King. We saw the movie a few weeks ago. It was disturbing in a way and I didn't remember it being that bad in the story.

Signs of spring

I've completed this post card for my husband's nephew. It's early, his wedding isn't until the end of June. However, with our impending move, I knew I wouldn't be able to get something accomplished until fall. And the way my mind works, if I don't get it at least started it will just become a memory or lost idea. So, here it is all finished.

The words are written with a pigma pen. Appliques and background fabrics are all silk. The embellishments are glass beads and small metal beads. Finished is standard postcard size, 4"X6". It was great fun doing this one.

I've set the Valentine lap quilt aside for now and probably won't get back to it until later on in the year. Huh, along with about 7 other projects in different phases of progress. Usually I keep a log on each project and notes or ideas of its direction. It's somewhat an organized system. Haven't lost or forgotten about anything yet.

Speaking of organization, my sewing room used to consist of an awkward table and everything else crammed in a closet in milk crates. And I had to share the room with my husband who loves to tinker with electronic things and take them apart. About 5 years ago, I told my DH that I've had it and I need proper storage space and would like my own room. So, we were moving anyway and searched for a bigger house. Ikea is my favorite store and I have lots of their furniture throughout my house. In the sewing room, I have 2 tall Ikea cabinets with shelves and drawers and 1 Ikea bookcase to match. My sewing machine sits on a 6 foot long Ikea table with a 2 drawer unit on the far end for my thread spools. Here are some pictures.

This is the best workspace now and I have so much room to spread out. My pictures don't do the room justice, it is larger than it looks and I didn't get over half the room in the pictures as I have my Valentine project still laid out on the floor. To the left of my machine is a cutting mat, so when I need to cut something I don't have to jump up and find a space on another table. The ironing board is also in this room. Will have to consider all the spaces we need for our next move and hope we will find a house with large enough rooms for the furniture.

Took a hike yesterday and noticed my neighbors have lots of great spring flowers coming up. There were pretty purple crocus's, carpets dainty snowdrops, and loads of sprouting tulips! Even the trees look like there are tiny buds making an appearance. The weather has been ideal and I hope it lasts with the threat of frost a distant memory. My neighbors have much prettier yards than mine. I planted 100 tulip bulbs 2 autumns ago. Some will come up, but they always look sickly. Maybe my dirt isn't as healthy. The only plants that look healthy in my garden are the weeds and there are lots of them. Oh well, at least I can grow something! :o)

Painful Memories

This week I had a final dental appointment before our move. It was sad, really. After 45 years, I have finally found an excellent dentist! My childhood memories of dental visits were always traumatic. Oh how I hated climbing up into that funky chair. After the initial "And how are we today" by the children's dentist, I knew pain would inevitably follow. Now when I was growing up, sweets were a rare thing. My sis and I only got candy at Halloween and maybe a handful of taffy at Christmas. No exaggeration, it's true. Yet my teeth are appalling. Not quite as horrifying as seeing metal mouth in a James Bond flick, but I assure you, I can count on one hand the number of teeth I have that do NOT have a filling or crown. My husband is the same way, although he has fewer fillings than I. One dentist told him once that he has good spit (saliva). What does that mean? Is there such a thing as good and bad spit?

Anyway, when I was 7 years old a dentist told my Mother and I that I would need braces. And would have to wear them for at least 2 years AND that I may need them when my permanent teeth come in. Really, no joking here, he really told us this.....

UHH, NO was my response. My teeth weren't crooked, I just had bad spit that made my teeth rot. OK, maybe it was the cheap inadequate toothpaste? Or the way I brushed my teeth? Whatever was causing the cavities, I KNOW it wasn't that my teeth were crooked! Needless to say, I didn't get the braces, thankfully, and we found ourselves a new dentist.

By the way, my mother also suffers from bad spit and lots of cavities, crowns and whatnot (she once had a gold tooth). My father was no exception either, he had a full set of falsies by the time he was 23. I blamed his bad teeth on the fact that he started smoking at the ripe old age of 13 and his family was very poor and couldn't afford check-ups for 10 children.

My son, has good spit. He has the best spit on the planet! He's going to be 25 soon and has not had one bad check-up (knock on wood and whatever else is around). EVER. No, not one cavity! How did that happen? Well, I'm not going to question a good thing! I am just so happy and overjoyed for him. He's been blessed with a wonderful set of teeth. Now let me tell you his routine (secret). Since he could eat solid food, he's had an apple everyday. Yeah, maybe an apple a day does keep the doctor/dentist away? When he was a baby, we had to give him fluoride drops every day and later he drank fluoridated water. He never had soda pop, still doesn't drink them. However, he had inherited my chocoholic gene.

Now, I made a comment about cheap toothpaste. Over the years, I think they've improved the formula. Not just the hype about whitening and blah, blah, blah. It's the paste or gel itself, way better than the stuff they used to pass off. Do you remember the stuff? It was like flavored paste that turns to foam, no substance whatsoever. And what was with that red tablet stuff we had to chew up in school? OOHH, it was horrible.

What made my dentist better than the rest was that I found him to be honest, firm yet caring. After all, he pulled 2 wisdom teeth for me 2 years ago (yeah, I'm "lucky" because I didn't have them out when I was 20, go figure. This is what my sis used to say to me all the time). He didn't "put me out" for this, no, just a local and yank, cracking sounds (my skull), yeah I could hear it all. And it's a little alarming when he says "hummm, I've never seen that before". He gave them to me as a memento. I have them in a tiny jar on my desk. Weird, I know. Now, when will those other 2 come in? UUGGGHH....

It's an experience I won't forget anytime soon, but I am still going to keep the teeth. My son had all 4 of his out about 3 weeks before I did. Maybe I was just waiting to have someone to go through it with me? My great dentist said that this was nothing, he had a patient who was in her 80's finally getting her wisdoms out. I wondered if the whole experience of hearing her teeth breaking away from your jaw shocked her so much it killed her or at least gives her nightmares? He also told me they sometimes can grow back? Is this possible? One dentist told me that if I haven't had my wisdoms out by now (I was only 25) then they weren't ever going to grow in. RIGHT, good-bye! Another quack.

Soon I will be on the hunt for a good dentist, maybe even a great one. At least I've had enough to know what to look for. In the meantime, keep brushing and flossing! :o)

More Progress

This was taken on BEAUTIFUL Sunday morning. The village square had these wonderful scraps hanging for decoration and celebration of Fasching and Rose Monday.

I am making slow steady progress on the Valentine lap quilt. Seems like I can only sew for about 2 hours before I switch gears and move on to something domesticated...yuck.....like cooking, cleaning, or HAVING to go grocery shopping. If it was possible for me, I would not ever go shopping....any kind of shopping. Nope, don't like it at all. Clothes shopping is always a disappointment. Absolutely everything I try on (and have actually bought) looks hideous on me from socks to sunglasses. Do you ever have those days?

Grocery shopping is another story entirely. I always feel as if I am in everyone's way and even though I shop at the same grocery store every month (yes, I only shop once a month) it seems like I have trouble finding everything I need, so I end up cruising the aisles at least twice. After 2 hours of this, I stand in line for what seems like an eternity and everything is starting to melt or defrost before it's bagged. This is why sewing/crafting/quilting is important to me. It's the ME time to create something I like. It can also be the stress outlet I need.

So without further ado, here it is so far:

I need to make more X's and O's and start on the words, "Be My Valentine". When completed, I am hoping to get it around 50"X 60". That seems to be the ideal size for a lap quilt.

My DH has already seen this in progress and I told him it was for him. His response, "Groovy, with the green and pink it looks like a 70's quilt". At least he doesn't come right out with, "I hate it". He respects me and my work, so, OK, I love him......today. HaHaHa, just kidding.

A Few More

OK, I've had days to do some sewing and only have a few more to show, boohoo! No whining, I did change my sketch and have done a clean out so that I have space to move now in my "studio". So, here they are, the X's and O's plus a few hearts. I am trying to get the hearts to look like the conversation heart candies. Haven't started on the white ones yet and am uncertain about the thread color, maybe I'll just stick with the magenta color as shown here.

SOOO many more blocks to go. Seems daunting even if it will just be a lap size quilt. Off I go.