Celebration Part 4

So, after several nights sleep I decided Log Cabin blocks would be the perfect solution. Of course I made a few to see if my thoughts were on point. 

Yep! So off to the old stash I went to find more blues/reds/creams.

I feel really good about this one. I might sew on a border but maybe not! At the moment it measures "51 by 45."

Thoughts??

Now for the winner of the FQ this post. It's Needled Mom whose favorite color at the moment is YELLOW! Congratulations to you. I must tell you, Mr. Cowboy gets to pull the names from the hat and always comments about the blogger names. I just laugh and send him on his way. That reminded me of when me and my brother were children and dad had a CB in his truck. Some of you may remember those which were a way to communicate back in the 70s. Truckers had them in their big rigs and when regular drivers discovered that CBs were a great way to outwit the Highway Patrol.....well you see where this is going.....LOL!  Dad's handle was Rancher on the Road. David and I loved to hear him talking with everyone on our road trips to Galveston. Mom was not so happy with all the chatter.

Sorry, I got off topic for a moment.

Remember that if you've won a fat quarter you can still participate. Just leave a comment and mention your favorite color. I'm very close to the 1600 post mark!!!

 

I'm already planning the next quilt. This process has been very therapeutic and has made me very happy.

One Scene, Five Points of View

I recently went on retreat with my "wacky" girlfriends. Needless to say, we had a blast what with laughing, eating and girl bonding. There was a bit of sewing involved but mostly we were just so happy to be together. However, I did bring along a little project for everyone to try. The above photo is a close-up of an old tree trunk and in the background are trees, the lake and a bit of sky. I gave each "wacky" a photo and ask them, along with myself, to make a mini of what each saw. I brought along as many pieces of landscaping type fabrics for them to use and each received a glue stick instead of using adhesive fabric backing such as Steam-a-Seam or Heat-n-Bond. Glue sticks are easier, faster and won't gum up your sewing machine!!!
Here's the results:

Rhonda's view (me)

Molly's view

Annie's view

Kathleen's view

Kathy's view
The retreat was a great success and therapeutic to us all. We are all refreshed and ready to get back to life and family.
I hope everyone who reads this blog post has a wonderful week and enjoy the last of April!!!

Mini Wednesday

It's another wonderful Wednesday & I'm so excited to show my latest mini process.

Already you can tell that a bird is emerging.

I'm working with shades of black.

And here's the crow which is the focal point of the piece. 

Here I've chosen a batik for the sky & a mottled tone on tone for the ground. I love all the muted colors and shapes in the pale lavender batik.

Next I've added a horizon line with a trees to add interest.

Now for the fun part. Placement & more details. I find the whole process very therapeutic. If I didn't have to eat I think I'd make minis 24/7.

I've added a rock formation, some sparse grass & a couple of bare branches.

Finally, the shadow beneath the crow. I've name this one "Solitary Crow."

So, I Was Inspired...........

Warning....this post is photo heavy.
This is Design Wall Monday sponsored by Judy over at Patchwork Times. Make sure you pop in to see what others are up to.
So, I was inspired by a wonderful lady who took one of my landscaping classes. She had recently visited another country and loved one of the places of worship (the photo above is not what sparked her interest). That got me thinking about something I hadn't tried. So off I went to do research the different types of places to worship and OMG there were so many ideas my head nearly exploded. I started sketching from clipart ideas, then filled that in with crayons and tiny scraps of fabric.
As you know, I love taking pics of my progress because 1. it keeps me on track, somewhat 2. I can easily see what does and doesn't work & 3. I love sharing with all my blogger friends. With that said, here's how the above block developed:

The grayish roof only seems to work with a tiny black underlining.

Everything so far is worked out on my non-stick pressing sheet. Underneath each window I used a gray crayon to shadow then pressed to seal or melt the area. (BTW, I used a sheet of copy paper between the iron and crayon markings.....wouldn't want crayon on my iron...hehehehehe)

Too much forest background.

I added a bit of sky to break up all that greenery, then added a bush or two at the back of the building.

All the fabrics are from my stash. I just love digging for just the right pieces. It's amazing how many greens are in my stash. Have I mentioned that I am in love with green. I have to make myself turn away from that color when purchasing fabric.....LOL....it's not easy.

I absolutely love this brick type fabric here. It was hard to cut into but I closed my eyes and did it.

I needed a similar color for the tower so off to the stash I went. I must say, digging through the piles and piles of fabric is therapeutic. Who else can relate to what I'm talking about?? I feel comforted in all that fabric. The colors, the smell, the feel of it, the...... oh, ah, sorry. Now where was I?

Add some windows to the mix.

This block is looking a bit naked. I am going for a church on a grassy hill but it's not quite there.

 Adding more of a rocky area underneath the church adds that illusion of up on a hill but it needs more.

A row of bushes evens it all out!! This is my favorite block so far.

Can you believe, I forgot to take the beginning pics.....sorry!!!!

I'm still using green whenever I can. This ties the blocks together and I get rid of to use lots.

Mr. Cowboy saw the tree and said that it was just too tall and overpowering. 

He was right! This one is much better.

Well, that's all for now. I'm planning on making 9 to 12 blocks but that may change.

So far each block is 12" square but I may trim them to a smaller measurement later.

Monday, Monday

First........

Don't forget to get counted for my "big give-away" by commenting HERE!

It's Design Wall Monday, again and I've been cleaning for the give-away but I did get in some design work for a mug rug that I'll be giving away one of these days.

I love making silhouettes.

Can you tell it's a dog??

Next, I did a silhouette of "The Duke" John Wayne.

On this particular one, I worked from the bottom up.

Remember, I'm using my favorite fabric adhesive, Steam-a-Seam, which

 I should have bought stock in.....LOL

It's easy cutting the tiny pieces because I using small scissors.

The dark handle scissors at the bottom 4th from the left, is my favorite but I'll use any of the smaller one at any given time.

I also use straight pins and tweezers to aid in placement.

I know this will be hard to believe but working on projects like this is therapeutic to me. I can't think of anything but what I'm working on and when I get my favorite radio station going, well it doesn't get any better than that. Plus, it's just plane fun!!

So far "The Duke" measures about 9 by 11 inches. I don't know if I'll add a border. This is one of those times I'll need to think about it.

All fabrics came from my stash. I haven't shopped for fabric is months. I can't believe that myself but it's true.

Make sure to pop over to Judy's to see what everyone else is doing.

Grands & Gardening

Austin is truly a bundle of joy & such a pudgy little cutie....just look at those cheeks!

Ayden is learning to identify coins. She is so funny. She was calling dimes diamonds....laugh out loud! 

Gardening is very therapeutic for me. I find myself humming happily as I water the plants and watch the bees pollinate everything.

The tomatoes are coming along.

The bell peppers are as well.

I'm even trying my hand at growing pineapples but this will take until next year.

But what I'm really looking forward to are the cucumbers. Can't wait to can sweet pickles!! It's amazing how quickly the cucumbers seem to grow inches over night.....more pickles for me.