Shopportunity and Inspiration

I don't ever want to forget that quilting is my hobby. Sometimes we get so lost in output, and getting everything perfect, that it's easy to lose the fun in the process! I try to free myself to enjoy my hobby...deadlines are a reality, even though I do sometimes treat them as guidelines, something to be aspired to. :)

But the point (and I do have one) isn't about deadlines - it's about taking the time to tap into creativity and inspiration, about letting go and enjoying the hobby. Sometimes that's hard to do with deadlines to swaps, and shows, and birthdays, and illnesses, and donation quilts, and trying to have a life in there somewhere.

Yesterday I took a break and went to a quilt shop down in McDonough. I really should have been working on one of the gazillion projects I have going on, or the guild newsletter, or clearing a path in my sewing room. But, I went shopping instead! The shop is A Scarlet Thread, and it's one of the nicest quilt stores I've been in. Over 7000 bolts of fabric! It occupies the entire building, and I think they have tried to address every little annoyance we have about quilt stores. They have a wide variety of batiks and Asian prints, both of which are favorites. The store is about 50 miles from my house, and so it's not likely that I will just pop in on a whim, but it was so inspiring to see different fabrics and different quilts. When you go to different parts of the country and to quilt shows, you see what others are working on and you can get inspiration from seeing new things or seeing new things in a different way.

Remember this?

I found this pattern when I visited Denver last year. I haven't seen it here in Atlanta, so getting out exposed me to something different that I may not have seen otherwise. As I was quilting it, I decided that I really was not enjoying the process...I was just doing a straight line that followed the curve of the design. I was so not feeling inspired, and so I sent it to long arm quilter Melinda Fulkerson. In this lifetime, I could not have come up with this! This is a great example of "Quilting makes the Quilt!" Thanks for the wonderful quilting, Melinda!

"I love deadlines...I especially like that whoosing sound they make as they fly by."

Let's Stay Together

Went to see Al Green and Etta James at the Chastain Park Amphitheatre last night. Wonderful evening and a great show! Etta James opened at 7:30PM EXACTLY! Apparently there was a question as to whether or not she would actually show up, as she has cancelled a number of shows in Atlanta over the years.

Folks kinda strolled in and got there when they got there. Hard to believe this is a sold out show. The weather was absolutely perfect, after a thunderstorm earlier in the day.

Etta James sang all her old blues songs. I thought her best song was a cover of Janis Joplin's "Piece of My Heart." What a difference maturity makes! Her song, "I'd Rather Go Blind" than see her man with someone else made me laugh and say, "I'd rather put his eyes out." She closed with "At Last," and yes, continued her tacky reference to Beyonce. “Where’s what’s her name? Where’s Beyonce?... I just want to whoop her a.." Tacky. But at 71, I guess she's earned the right...she sounded great and put on a good show.

After Etta James cleared the stage, Rev. Al Green held church! When Al took the stage, he did not stop moving for the next hour and a half! He handed out about 30 roses throughout the show. He started out with songs from his latest CD, "Lay It Down," but even he acknowledged that we had not come to here that. Who else but Al Green can go from “Amazing Grace” to “Let’s Stay Together” without missing a beat?

Photo Credit: AccessAtlanta.

Surprise!

So much to update! Starting with most recent first...just came back from a surprise visit to Oakland. We had the best time ever! The gang got together for the first time in months...I was talking to Regina one day and she told me about it and we cooked up this plan to surprise everyone! We did not tell anyone we were coming (besides Regina, of course, and we stayed with her)...we went to the party with Regina, then she went inside and said to everyone that we wanted them to call us so we could say hi. They said, "Oh, it's so late in Atlanta, they'll be in bed." (I don't know what they think has happened to us since we moved to Atlanta - 10 o'clock on a Saturday night in bed????) So she called my cell phone and held it up and everyone said, "Hi, Al and Jeanette!" We talked for a bit as we walked up to the front door, and, in a moment that Hollywood could not have scripted, Abner said to me on the phone, "Let me know next time you are going to be in town...I'll pick you up at the airport!" We rang the doorbell, Judy's friend Michael (who was the only one there who does not know us!) opened the door, and I said to Abner, "Which airport?" I'll never forget the looks on everyone's faces, and it was a wonderful evening. We enjoyed catching up with everyone. Everything Harriet cooked was delicious, of course. Back home on Sunday and still on a high about the wonderful weekend! I forgot to charge the battery in my camera, so no photos.

OK - so what else? I finished my block for our BSS President O.V.'s quilt. The quilt will be red and white (Delta colors) and I borrowed some elephant fabric (Delta symbol) from Lynette. The block is called "Arkansas Crossroads," to honor her Arkansas heritage.

And...I finished my Carrie Steele Pitts quilt. Look at me, way ahead of time! At Shannon's to be quilted on the long arm. Here's the finished top...

I am not proud...this is a kit, purchased at Tiny Stitches in March. It is The Princess and the Pea. I hope the little princess who receives this will enjoy this quilt for the rest of her life!

I also finished my postcards for the Black Music Month swap for the online African American Quilt group. Only two weeks late...

"Good friends are like bras, supportive, never leave you hanging, make you look good and are always close to your heart."