RIP Audrey Thompson

My Sister-In-Law, Audrey Thompson, passed away in California on Tuesday.  My husband happened to be visiting, and was in the hospital with her when her spirit left this earth.  Although Audrey and I were not close, we always enjoyed one another’s company. She is survived by her daughter, Nicole, and grandson, Nicolas. 

While Al has been in California, thankfully, the Christmas holidays have kept me busy. My book club shared gifts at our meeting. I embroidered these guest towels as my gift:

"Dear Santa: Define "Naughty."  You can't see the white dove in the second towel.

 

For O.V.'s Christmas party, I made a Christmas ornament:

 

 

Brown Sugar Stitchers held our Christmas luncheon last Saturday. The highlight for everyone was the male in our group, who goes by  the nickname Sugar Bear. Bessie says he was sharp as a rat turd, which is not a disparaging comment, but a compliment! Apparently, rat turds are sharp at both ends. Gotta love that tie and gotta love that pocket scarf! And the top hat!



 I still suck at Y seams.

I have to figure it out, though, because this quilt is nothing but Y seams!

Y didn't I notice that before now????

 

Dear Santa: I've been good. (Mostly)

Eye Exam

You know how you get your eye exam and the doctor is testing the prescription and says, "Which one of these is better? One or two?" And you say, "One." "OK, one or three?" "Three." "Three or four?" And you really can't tell a difference between three and four? For weeks, I have been auditioning fabrics for the background and border of the feathered star. I was gravitating towards a rust color, and I had even pieced out the left and right sides of the border. When I put it up against the quilt, I hated it. I think the rust colors detract too much from the feathers and all you see is the border. I tried again with green, and it's OK...so I went back and looked at the rust again and then I couldn't decide between the green or the rust. Here they both are. BTW, quilters, did you know if you are having trouble with colors or layout, in addition to value finders and squinting your eyes, taking a picture is very helpful? Looking at this picture, if you can't decide, it probably doesn't matter, right? The green is more restful, so I'm going with...green! My other thought is that there's so much of the brown/rust in the quilt, that the green would bring out that one green in the quilt. Every time I'm agonizing over the colors of a quilt, I think of ancestor quilters who had to work with what they had on hand.













And I forgot to post the quilt that I finished for a family devastated by hurricane Sandy. This was a quilt I started years ago and didn't like the way the greens came together, so I put it in the closet. I actually am happy with the way it looks completed, and I know the family who is rebuilding their lives will enjoy it. How 'bout my artsy fartsy arrangement? LOL!

If you would like to donate a quilt, the effort is being coordinated by eQuilter...a favorite online quilt store. If I can't find it locally, they are my go-to online shop, mostly because of the work the owners do. For example, 2% of all sales go to charity, and you can choose the charity where your portion goes. For more information on the quilt collection effort, go to www.equilter.com/cgi-bin/webc.cgi/quiltrelief.htm

SHIP QUILTS TO:
Timeless Treasures Fabrics
161 East 11th Avenue
Roselle, NJ 07203
This quilt collection will go on for several months, with a goal of 5,000 quilts.

I've spent the last two days at a class put on by Atlanta Sewing Center on the Embroidery Software that I have owned for two years! I have used it, but not to the full extent of its capability. Can't wait to play with it!

Dear Karma: I have a list of people you missed.