Thank You for the many birthday wishes left within my comments. i did have a great day with many phone calls, visits and even some gifts~!!!~ i am blessed.
all of that birthday celebrating has left me a little bit behind on my blog visiting and i hope to be out and about in blogland during the week catching up.



this is the second postcard that i have made using some smaller appliqued heart blocks that were generously given to me. i've made this one for someone in particular but was wondering if i should make another one (or two?) for the give-away package of cards that i'm currently creating . . . what do you think? this second card is quite likely to be included within that package and there are several more that i'm working on . . .

just wanted you all to know that i haven't forgotten and i am still creating cards for the promised one year anniversary/200th blog post give-away.

a few years ago, at Christmas, i bought an Amaryllis plant. after it was finished with that bloom cycle it went dormant.

i continued to water it and hope but nothing happened . . . i was about to give up on it when i noticed a bit of green growth a couple of weeks ago. and now it has a long, strong stalk that supports two beautifully opened blossoms as well as a third smaller one that is still in the bud stage.

i love that lime green center as much as the red and white petals~!!~

is this one of those plants that only blooms every second year? and isn't it interesting that it has decided to grace me with color at Easter rather than Christmas, as it did originally? i'm guessing that the plant nurseries and their habit of forcing flowers at all times of the year has something to do with this but i don't really know.

i'm just happy that it has brightened my dining room with a second showing~!!~

today is my birthday and has been full of so many delightful surprises that i've had to go into the photo archives and find a forgotten shot in order to have time to post anything at all. i hope that your day is full of beautiful surprises too~!~

"It takes courage to grow up and turn out to be who you really are."

e.e. cummings

yesterday a.m. we were experiencing snow showers but this morning it's all about the sunshine again . . . i took my camera out to see if i could get any shots of spring emerging and i found the daffodils reaching out through the cold ground and up towards the warmth of the sun. keep in mind that these are macro shots and the plants are just barely pushing up so they appear to be much larger than they actually are.

i also found some crocus and even some tulips just coming up.

recently i read someones description of spring being like any other birth; contractions, lots of starting and stopping and then, finally, new life. this certainly seems like an apt description to me and thinking of spring in those terms causes me to remember that it will all happen in good time and just as it should. i just need to remember to breathe in those resting (reluctant) moments . . . whooo -whooo - whooooo

this is carrot quilt number six ~!~ quilted, bound and signed~!!~ this small piece (approximately 23 and a half inches x 25 inches) was one of two quilts that i did with my guild sisters as part of a round robin for small and doll quilts. i won't tell you how long i've had it waiting around for finishing/attention because that would be embarrassing. suffice it to say that it's been way too long. i did the primitive little bean tree and the next person added a panel with "Love Life" and some sunshine. the last person added the cute little primitive house appliqued onto a checkerboard background. then it came back to me and i added a bit more checkerboard background and some appliqued pumpkins as well as a few more rays on the sun. i think it turned out pretty cute and am planning on displaying it on the wall during the fall season. i quilted this one in the baptist fan pattern, using a heavier thread and utility stitches so it went pretty fast.

the second quilt that was part of this round robin activity is actually already finished and had i been thinking i would have included a shot of it also. i had the other members of my team build around a block with a primitive appliqued bee skep on it. the finished quilt reminds me of the longest, most golden days of summer.

here is a sneak peek of carrot quilt number seven (!!!!!!!) in progress. i made a second bean tree block and a second primitive bee skep block for this little piece and put them together in a quilt top of their own. i used lots of pinks, some green and soft browns in this one and it has a spring look to it so it's been a bit more seasonally appropriate to stitch on. i've even used a soft pink colored embroidery thread to quilt it with. this is the first time i've ever used embroidery floss (a single strand) to quilt with but it's lovely and i really like it.

once i have this one finished i'll post a shot of all three small quilts together since they are "siblings" of a sort.

my apologies for not being very attentive to my blog and it's readers over the last few days. i've had an out of town doctor visit and since it's a 3 hour drive (one way) it knocks me off of my feet/schedule for a few days after. i'll get back on track very soon i hope. while out of town to see the doctor i also got to go and see the new Alice In Wonderland movie. in 3-D. at an IMAX theatre~!~ and it was TOTALLY ENCHANTING in every possible way~!!~ it's rare that i go to a movie with such high hopes and not only have those expectations met but actually exceeded. i am head over heels in love with this production~!!!!!~!

Tim Burton is one of my very favorite directors and he did not disappoint~!~! the characters and cast were beautiful and the story itself captured my heart completely. Alice returns to the strangeness of the rabbit hole and learns she is more than she imagined herself to be and full of "muchness"; not just in her dreams but in her "real" world as well. this is a beautiful movie and in my opinion a rare gem when it comes to young strong female characters with heart. Alice certainly won mine~!!!~ GO AND SEE THIS MOVIE~!!!~! and tell me what you think.
in the meantime i'm going to be re-visiting the original Alice In Wonderland story . . .

we still have snow outside of our windows but it is quickly melting away. the sun has been brightly out and i see more of the lawn by the hour i think. the indoor plants are convinced that spring is already actually here and they are all spurting out new growth of all kinds. i have a zebra aloe that is sending out blossoms on loooooong stems heading right for the lightest and brightest spots. i sympathize; i too want to seek the full on spring sunshine and find myself moving around the house in search of the sunniest, warmest, and brightest (happiest) places to perch myself.

i've also begun to move things about within the house . . . spring fever, spring cleaning and just plain spring seeking . . .

this season holds so many promises . . .

my creative life seems to be a lot about postcards just lately . . . and i'm not complaining as i LOVE making them~!~ these two were recently made and are soon to be mailed to their destinations.

no worries though, i'm working madly away at the give-away cards too~!!~

blessings

"Art is communication,

and if there is no communication

it is as though the work had been stillborn."

from Walking On Water

by Madeleine L'Engle
 

thank you to all of you who help to give my art life simply by coming here and seeing what i've done. you're wisdom, support and encouragement are a priceless gift that i treasure.

after the short little brag session below you will see that i have something in the works for my next give-away. a tangible expression of the gratitude i feel to all who offer me this sustaining communication which is an integral part of my creative life.

 

i'm finally getting around to posting my newest little finished carrot quilt (#5~!!!!~). this one took a bit longer to make since there is quite a bit of close quilting throughout.

 

all photos can be enlarged for a closer look.

 

i am happy with the results and am now working on carrot quilt #6 . . .

 

edit: i am linking this old post into a little quilt show hosted by Taryn of  Reproduction and Antique Quilt Lover.


it occurred to me just after posting my last post that i should be celebrating my first blogiversary~!!~ i began blogging in March of 2009. it's been a fun and interesting adventure and it certainly would not have been quite as fabulous if i hadn't been acquiring new friends along the way. in addition to being at my first year mark i also discovered that i'm almost to my 200th post. so, in celebration, i think it's time for another give-away.

since i realized this all a bit belatedly i am still creating what i'll be giving. i do know that it will be a package of six postcards. i don't want to actually have the drawing until i've finished them. so, you will have to be patient with me and i'll continue to post teasers on the progress of the cards. this shot is of some fabric card blanks (meaning i haven't added any embellishments yet) that i made using my own hand dyed fabrics and a few batiks. i love the way that hand dyed fabrics look with batiks and my stitches and other embellishments show up nicely on them too. i will however be making more blanks with a different look to them and may even throw in a paper collaged card or two . . . for now i'm just having fun creating a variety of postcards that you will be able to use for sending or keeping or whatever you might like.

. . . so stay tuned . . .

on monday spring was making promises in my neighborhood: the snow was almost completely melted off of the grass (which i swear was starting to get a greenish blush to it), the pond was losing it's ice caps and i even found some crocus and daffodil buds just beginning to push there way up out of the muddy earth (without using a magnifying glass). i've lived in the high desert all of my life and i know that "spring", in the way that most other people understand it, isn't really going to get serious around here until mid to late April. BUT i also know that there will be teensy tiny little signs showing way before then if one is paying attention and who isn't paying attention by this point in the year~!?!~ as i said, on monday, there were some promising signs. and then on monday night it began to snow. it snowed ALL night long. we ended up with an accumulation of 14" and some drifts that were quite a bit deeper than that. the school declared it's first snow day (which around here takes a HUGE amount of snow to make happen) of the year and even my dh was unable to get to work. within the space of 10 hours we were suddenly plummeted back into winter. sigh. not just any old sigh but a BIG heavy sigh with tears welling up in my eyes . . . i should be completely used to this but apparently i'm not . . . so i've gone to my indoor plants for solace.

this little fern that i have growing within the sheltered walls of home sweet home still thinks spring must be coming. after all the daylight hours are getting longer and it resides safely within a temperature controlled environment . . .
i accepted what gifts that it had to offer with gratitude and didn't breathe a word to it about the harsh realities that are just on the other side of that big pane of glass . . .

i've recently received a package in the mail from Cathie at http://www.clevelandgirlie.blogspot.com/ and wanted to share the wonder and whimsy of her sweet art with you.

these three pieces are art squares that she created and upon seeing them i fell head over heels in love with them. i happened to be visiting her blog and stumbled upon them on one of her posts. i was excited to see that she had them up for sale but this post had been written a while back and i did not think it possible that these would still be available but decided to link over to her etsy shop just to make sure . . .

you cannot imagine the noisy glee with which i discovered that they could still be mine~!!~

and with a couple of clicks they were exactly that: ALL MINE~!!!!~ yyyiiiipppeeeeee~!!~

the joys of the internet know no bounds~!~

i encourage you to visit her charming blogspace. she is a talented mixed media artist with a wealth of creativity to share as well as lots of delightful daily blogginess~!~
a bit of remedy for the late winter blues . . . enjoy yourself.

i have an exciting announcement~!~ my daughter has gotten a puppy so i now have a grand-dog~!!~ isn't she cute~!?!~ when people ask me what kind of dog she is i have to laugh and tell them that she is a full bred Honduran Mutt and 100% Sweetheart. her name is Suki. and i can hardly wait until i get to actually meet her~!~ this is a photograph that my daughter sent me.

i've gotten completely into the spirit of things and have made Suki what i'm calling a "quiltlet". (think piglet: sorta cute ugly but definitely more on the cute side)


i purchased a package of inexpensive flannel baby receiving blankets and placed them together right sides facing out and then utility stitched them in a sort of diagonal plaid pattern. no binding and i left the batting out, as in warmer climates fleas and ticks are an issue and the batting would only complicate things. the receiving blankets were not exactly the same size but i decided that was perfectly okay. as a finishing touch i embroidered Suki's name on a twill tape and then stitched it onto the quiltlet.

the one that you see pictured here is already on it's way to Honduras and i'm halfway through making another one. in fact, i'm now thinking i may end up creating a whole line of "Suki wear" . . . maybe some doggy scarves and who knows what else i might think of~!~

today i hope to be mailing out my newest fabric postcard. i recently received a very generous gift of some hand appliqued heart quilt blocks and decided to use one of them within a postcard as a thank you. i added some embroidery and tiny button embellishments and bound it with a perfectly sized batik bit that i just happened to have on my cutting table. i'm pleased with it and hope the receiver will be as well. this next photo is of a card that i have in progress. it will be a birthday card for someone very special . . . this one is more involved and will take a bit longer but i have a pretty good start. see that rooster? i started out with a simple cross stitch pattern and sort of did my own thing with it . . . got a bit blingy didn't it~!?!~ i stitched a metallic silver chicken wire behind the rooster (stitched on some of my own hand dyed Aida cloth). i'm now adding some floral touches with silk ribbon embroidery as well as many other threads/stitches. i also used some of my hand dyed cottons in patches around the rooster. i hope to show you a finished card within a week or two . . .

this is a soft cloth bunny doll that i've had for a long time. he was purchased as an unclothed item to be crafted further with. i liked him just the way he was and chose to display him that way. when my daughter was about eight years old she decided that he needed a vest. she went into my studio, found a fabric that she liked and without a pattern proceeded to make his cute little vest. i was completely delighted~!!~ and he's been wearing it ever since . . .

this is a "tattoo" that i embroidered on my first and only handmade Raggedy Ann dolly. i should have made a Raggedy Andy dolly as well but just never got around to it.

i may eventually make another one but think that i might try something a bit more primitive when i do . . .

years after i created Ann i decided that she needed angel wings. i had a small piece of cutter quilt that was red with white polka dots and simply cut out two wing shapes and ran a copper wire through their edges so that i could make them pose-able. i think she's very proud of her accessory wings~!~

until i make an Andy doll, Ann has been content to befriend the vested bunny. at this time of year she highly suspects that he's the famous Cadbury Bunny . . .

they make a cute couple and i love seeing them displayed with some of my doll quilts. you didn't think i was the one sleeping under all of those little quilts, did you~!?!~