2019 SUMMARY

I'm a little bit LATE !

(been traveling to see family)\\

So - Here Goes !

2020 was GREAT...

We MOVED to North Carolina, and bought a house in the mountains...  We love it here, my DH fishes in this fabulous pond, and the whole lower level of the house is for QUILTING and GUESTS - sometimes they are QUILTING GUESTS !!!!

Yesterday we saw a Great Blue Heron fly all the way down the pond - it was so spectacular !

I used up a LOT of thread this year ….  more than any year since I started taking a New Year's Day photo of the year's empty spools....  Now my empty spool drawer is empty - better get busy !

I sent some of my fancy linen quilts to shows, and got a beautiful Judges Choice ribbon for this one, which you have seen before... but here's a closeup - it's called Sunday Pearls.

I completed my term as a University Dean, and resumed faculty status as a professor.  This year I am on leave and am enjoying having time to adjust and prepare for a new role beginning next year.

It was a great year -  and I plan for the next one to be even better !

Happy New Year to you and all the special people in your life.

Kathleen

IT'S A WEB PAGE , HOORAY !

Happy Year's past and Happy New Year to come !!!


I will be starting the New Year with a REAL WEB PAGE !

(I tried all the 'pretend" and "do it yourself"  web pages...…..  and ended up with a mess of products I was not happy with - proving the old adage "you get what you pay for "  LOL.

So -  DRUMROLL

MY WEB PAGE  

OH HAPPY, HAPPY

My goal was to keep it simple - the important stuff, a few photos.  I'll be adding new content, especially more photos, in the coming months.

And in case you are interested, it was designed and is hosted by Vistaprint.  I pay a small monthly fee, but I can update all the content through a very nice system they have, or I can pay a small fee if I want some more substantial changes.

STOP BY AND VISIT THE WEB PAGE -  I WILL TURN ON THE TEA KETTLE !

Kathleen

The Quiet Days

It's the quiet days - after the holiday, when everyone is still a bit on slowed down speed.  And every day seems a perfect day to sew............

So, I am busying myself with some desk work.........  Vistaprint had an amazing sale, and these lovely cards were 60 percent off..........   so i grabbed some good closeups of my show/linen quilts, and had a pile of them made...

I got MERCHANDISE !   yippee.

I'll give some away in sets of four, and probably sell some too.  Of course, my website address is on the back, so they make nice little advertisements, too ....  I think this is going to be a busy quilting year, and these little cards will be one of the fun things I can play with !  They are blank inside, so anyone who buys them can send them out themselves for thank you or birthday wishes, or whatever.  I have seen artists do this, but never quilters... and I don't see WHY NOT?

So - what do you think ?  Do you like them?  Feedback is welcome.

Kathleen

I Think I'll Keep It !

I tried using rulers on my new long arm machine this week !!!

And it worked...……… I didn't do anything fancy, just a little stitch in the ditch , but it's fun...

This little donation quilt is now all completed.  It is part of a Fat Quarter Challenge, and will go to Quilts Beyond Borders.  

So - I think I will keep the long arm machine !!!

Kathleen

Donation Quilting

Hello everybody -

As life begins to return to something close to normal for our family after the gigantic move from San Francisco to North Carolina, I have been opening bins of fabric and unfinished projects.  With the holidays approaching, it was a good time to complete some donation quilts.  Here are some samples:

The ever-growing stack of crumb blocks turned into this strong top.  DH says it qualifies for use by a boy !!!

This one comes from orphan blocks with a bit of red sashing.  Any time I have any leftover block, I size it up to 12.5 inches and put it in the orphan pile, so I have lots of variety to choose from !

This 

this is just a top, but I just fell in love with it.  This is for a Challenge for Quilts Beyond Borders.

 

and last but not at all least, some simple half-square triangles, all ready to go hug a child somewhere.  I just love the simplicity of traditional quilts !

Meanwhile, I am busy planning for my exhibition at the Birmingham Festival of Quilts next summer, and I decided it was time I had a real web page, in addition to a blog...…  Now THAT can eat up all your spare time !!!!  Soon, soon.

Hope you are enjoying planning for the holiday.  DH and I will keep it simple - a dinner with some friends, and some relaxing time at home.  No big travel for us this year.  We will snuggle up in front of the fire, I will quilt, and he will work on his stamp collection - sounds like heaven to me !

Kathleen

A Treadle

We have a new machine at my house...……. well, not really new.

But new to us.  I have been waiting to put it in front of the bay window, and now it is in.

Yes, it has a machine, dated 1906, and is in working order after I get the belt repaired, I think.  One day I will open her up and let the machine come out to play.

For the moment, though, Kitty Mystic is enjoying it far too much, as it gives him a view of the pond, the birds, and all the squirrels !  

Kate, aka Kathleen

Blizzard !!!!

WOW - look who visited my yard this morning !!!

yep, it's a white squirrel.  He's not an albino - you can see the eyes are not pink, and he has some gray color on his head, ears, and back.


Here's a better face shot:

And look how beautiful he is in the sun !!!

We've seen him four times now, twice eating seeds from our bird feeder, so we have proclaimed him a family member and i call him Blizzard.

There are colonies of white squirrels in various locations in the US, one of the most notable in the town of Brevard, NC, which is near where i live...

Welcome to the family, Blizzard !