Piece O' Cake Blog

from Thunder Bay, MI...

2008-05-04T09:40:00.005-05:00

I'm just returning from teaching at a quilters retreat in Thunder Bay, MI. It was held at the Thunder Bay Golf and RV Resort just outside of Alpena, MI. This event is similar to a guild retreat. You can sew as late as you like on whatever project you want to. But here they also bring in a nationally known teacher to teach a class or two. There's golf which is nice if your spouse or a friend wanted to come along and not quilt.

I've never been to this part of the country before so I learned a lot about it. Did you know that the upper part of Michigan is referred to as "UP" (not the word "up" but U-P, the two letters). That's easier than saying "upper peninsula" all the time.

There is still snow on the ground in the UP! I didn't see it, but I believe that it's true because it was practically cold at Thunder Bay in the mornings. I'll be flying home to hotter weather so it felt nice to me.

The Thunder Bay Resort is known for their elk viewing sleigh/carriage rides that include a gourmet dinner. I went with several of the women in my class last night. We rode out in horse-drawn carriages (when there is snow on the ground, runners are exchanged for the wheels on the carriages). This is the carriage that was behind the one I was in.

We did, in fact, see elk! They are there in the photo, hidden in the trees. I learned a lot about elk last night. More than I can write about here. Suffice it to say that if you want to know what I know, you should go on the carriage ride.

Dinner was lovely. Cooked on wood stoves in a modernized cabin in the woods by Jan. She and her husband, Jack, are the developers and owners of the resort - and of a herd of elk! They are rightfully proud of what they have built. This retreat is a fun event and worth considering if you like to quilt and travel.

You just never know...

2008-04-30T17:33:00.008-05:00

My friend, Laurie, and I walk 3 miles 5 mornings a week when I'm not on the road teaching. Early, before dawn.

This morning at the end of our walk we heard a faint noise. I thought it was a cat in distress. But then the noise started to sound a little bit like a person—in distress. We went over to investigate and it was indeed a man. On the ground. In the bushes. In distress. Saying "call 911" in a faint voice.

Laurie stayed with him and I ran for help. I found a woman in a car with a cell phone and asked her to call 911. Then I looked up and realized that the emergency room door was pretty close (part of our walk takes us next to the hospital). So I ran there. It was like a bad movie... I was so out of breath I could only choke out the most important information.

Once I got it out, I went back to let Laurie know that help was coming and then I stood out in the road to point the way to, first, a security guard from the hospital, then the fire department, and then the ambulance. All the while Laurie was over there holding hands and praying with the man in the bushes.

As it turns out, the man shot himself in the chest the night before and spent the night unable to move in the bushes. He didn't kill himself, but he did hurt himself very, very badly.

The police came. A lot of them. (There was a gun. The security man found it and moved it and the police were not happy.) Laurie and I both gave statements. I learned a lot in a very little time about suicide (and suicide attempts) from the policeman in charge.

You know what... this is probably not what most readers of this blog would expect to read. I never had any idea that I would write a post about this sort of thing. Who expects to find a man in the bushes at dawn who shot himself the night before!? Not me. Certainly not Laurie who spent a lot more time with him than I did. What I feel compelled to say is that, if you are depressed, get help! Please don't hurt yourself.

PS - It's days later and I have no idea what the end to this story is. I wish I did because we all like a nice, neat ending. But life isn't like that, is it?

I do know that I'm more aware of the fact that you never know what's going on inside of the mind of those around you. As a result, I'm trying to be a much nicer person to those I encounter and perhaps that's the moral of this story.

The dancing granddaughter...

2008-04-25T16:49:00.002-05:00

My granddaughter, Elanor, decided (with her mother's help) to do a happy birthday song and dance for my mom (her great-grandmother). We'll be seeing this number again at the end-of-year dance recital. She will be more spectacularly dressed then. My son, Christopher, had the thought of putting the movie on Youtube. It's way easier than I thought it would be!

From Florida...

2008-04-20T08:40:00.006-05:00

I'm teaching in the Tampa Bay area and I have to say that the Florida I have seen is really beautiful. It's very lush. I think that you would have to beat back the vegetation to keep from being grown over!

I've seen birds that I don't see at home. One day during class (with the Manatee Quilters) I looked out and there were birds with long, curved beaks poking around for insects in the grass. Some of the women in class knew what they were, but I have forgotten. Ibis maybe? It takes me longer than one sighting to put the name and the bird together in my mind. Whatever they were, they were fun to watch.

I'm in Sarasota now with Friendship Knot Quilters, staying near a golf course with many ponds. Haven't seen any alligators yet, but I am told that they are definitely here. I walk early in the mornings (before dawn) and am sticking to pavement! I took these photos today on my walk (after the sun came up). the golf course is how I have always pictured Florida in my mind. The shapes of the leaves on the fan palm really caught my eye.

Flying

2008-04-14T15:20:00.004-05:00

I flew last Friday (on American) to North Carolina to visit friends. After all of the flight problems I was surprised to get to DFW (Dallas-Fort Worth) and find the place nearly deserted. There was no one in the security line! It was sort of amazing. Lots of personnel, no passengers. I was on the one flight to Raleigh-Durham that made it out on Friday morning. My flight home on Sunday was uneventful as well. These days, that's all one hopes for.

While I was in NC I got to visit with Hollis Chatelain and see the exhibit of her quilts that was hanging in the Duke Chapel. It was truly moving. If you get a chance to view these quilts be sure to take it.

We walked through the Duke gardens that afternoon. I have never seen so much wisteria in one place in my life (we don't get much wisteria in Sherman, TX). The scent was close to overpowering. The grounds were beautiful. It's worth a visit!

Word Power

2008-04-07T15:45:00.003-05:00

My son, Jeff, sent me a link to the Free Rice site today. On it you will find a pretty decent vocabulary game that is good for your brain and raises money (in the form of rice) for those in need. The more words you guess correctly, the more rice is donated to the United Nations World Food Program. The money/rice comes from the advertisers on the site.

Jeff is in grad school at Johns Hopkins School of Public Health. He finds a lot more of this kind of thing than I do. Part of that is being at Hopkins and part of it is that he's 22 and on the internet a lot more than I am. But, as he says, the only down side to this is the time you spend playing.

FYI - "nudibranch" means sea slug!

Hello from Linda the other half of Piece O' Cake!!!

2008-04-04T14:16:00.003-05:00

We recently made a driving trip from Grand Junction Colorado to San Clemente Calif. Our son Jerry and his wife Viviana live there.

It was an interesting drive. The scenery between Grand Junction and San Clemente is very diverse. On the drive you see snow capped mountains and desert together. As you drive toward Utah it changes to red rock formations. Which can make you say OOH! a lot.

The best part of the trip was when we left the Mojave Desert and drove into Southern California. In this first picture the hills were alive with color.

What a sight after a few years of the hills being brown from the drought. I love the yellow mixed with the different shades of green. It made me want to make a quilt colored like early spring. With touches of purple, red, and orange from the flower colors.

I always want to visit the quilt shops when I am traveling. In the second picture is Material Possessions in Lake Forest California. This is one of my favorite shops. I can always do some serious fabric buying here. I wish I had the time to visit all the shops in the area and along the way on our drive. Maybe next trip.

I will be at Becky's in Sherman Texas next. Let you know what's happening there in the next post.

Linda

My Husband in a Kilt for Breast Cancer Research

2008-04-01T15:59:00.006-05:00

I'm home from California and unpacked. Linda is here! We're working on projects to be made with our newest collection of fabric. More on that later. But today my husband wore a kilt to work!

Steve is Dean of the Sciences and a full professor of biology at Austin College in Sherman, TX. Several of his colleagues have had breast cancer. When they formed a group to raise money for research he was happy to join them. As he says, some of his favorite people have breasts!

Seven people volunteered to be "fools" on April 1st to raise money. The vice president for academic affairs was the Easter bunny. Another professor, Steve Stell, in the religion department was a prom queen (definitely a sight to behold!) In that context, Steve looks downright manly, don't you think?

There are other activities that we are taking part in to raise funds. If you would like to donate to the cause (and it's a very good cause) click here to go to the American Cancer Society's donation page.

Becky's Coffee Cup Quilt

2008-03-28T21:43:00.002-05:00

I finished it! Well, almost. I think I'm going to add a bottom border. Surely I have the perfect fabric (or fabrics) for that. It will have to be quilted and bound and then it will really be done. I very much enjoyed taking a class from Ruth McDowell. It was good to be a student again.

My Coffee Cup

2008-03-27T09:55:00.002-05:00

Here are a couple of pictures of the quilt I am making in Ruth's class in it's early stages. I stayed late last night so I'm actually a little further along than it shows here. The quilt is 24" wide (or so) without borders. I'm loving it!

I'm A Student!

2008-03-25T21:50:00.006-05:00

Today in Ruth McDowell's class, I cut and sewed and managed to piece about a 7" x 7" square unit. I took a couple of photos but, alas, the camera is not with me! I will upload (soon/tomorrow) some photos showing you all a progression of what I accomplish in my 5 days of class.

I'm finding that years of applique have left me well-suited to the kind of piecing that Ruth does. (Click here to go to Ruth's site for more about her.)

I'm used to working with lots of different, small pieces of fabric. I am also used to not making a quilt top in a day. Good thing because the pieces I drew inside my pattern are small. If I have this thing together before I pack up on Friday it will be a miracle.

But I'm learning a lot. Ruth is an excellent teacher. It's nice to play!

Nepenthe @ Big Sur, CA

2008-03-23T12:30:00.004-05:00

I spent yesterday with Caryl Bryer Fallert on the California coast. We drove down Highway 1 from Asilomar to a restaurant/gift shop called Nepenthe in Big Sur. Caryl had been there before in the late 60s. She says she thinks it hasn't changed much.

The view from the restaurant is amazing! We ate outside and enjoyed both the view and the weather—and the food! Then we went to the gift shop (it's called Phoenix). I had way too much luck finding all sorts of things. I'm going to have to quit shopping soon.

The owner is a painter and he adorned the restrooms with the most amazing paintings. That's me posing in the ladies room. A very helpful man working in the store is the one who made sure we visited the "paintings". He even made sure the men's room was empty and then let us look in there. Should have taken a picture of it too but wasn't thinking.

Happy Easter to you all. I start my class with Ruth McDowell today. I think I'm ready. I guess I'll find out soon if I really am ready.

My class at Empty Spools

2008-03-20T23:04:00.002-05:00

This week at Empty Spools is winding down... we've had 4 1/2 days of class. We have one more 1/2 day tomorrow when we'll talk about quilting and any other topics that come up.

It's been great! Everyone has done a wonderful job. We worked on color, on constructing a more "organic" background, and on applique techniques. That's us in the photo: from left to right in rows, starting in the back, that's Karen, Gail, Christy, Bran, Linda, Janey, me, Kay, Tanya, and Trudy.

One reason that I really like multi-day classes is because I get a chance to get to know the people in my class. Everyone has a story and I enjoy your stories.

My grandson is eating corn on the cob!

2008-03-19T22:05:00.004-05:00

If you click the link on this blog to my son's blog over there on the right (Becky's son's blog about her grandbabies) you'll see a picture of my grandson eating corn on the cob! He's 4 1/2 months old and he's pretty cute! And, yes, I'm Nana.

From Pacific Grove, CA

2008-03-16T15:22:00.003-05:00

Steve and I are in Pacific Grove. This afternoon I'll be setting up my classroom and meeting the women who will be in my class this week at the Empty Spools seminar.

It's beautiful here! I took this photo on our morning walk, just after the sun came up. It's crisp and the very windy (which you can't tell from the photo). We went to the Monterey Bay Aquarium and saw lots but my favorites were the jellyfish. Amazing creatures.

Quilting/Ricky Tims on CBS News Sunday Morning

2008-03-14T09:39:00.010-05:00

This Sunday, March 16, CBS News Sunday Morning with Charles Osgood is going to feature a segment on quilting (unless there is late-breaking news). Check your local listing for exact times. The program will feature the International Quilt Festival in Houston and a portion of the story will focus on Ricky Tims, his quilting and his music. Pretty cool, huh!

Ricky is pretty sure that the CBS news website will feature the profile on their website after the show airs so you may be able to see it online too. Here is a link to that website: CBS News Sunday Morning. Enjoy the show!

Ami Simms has a great idea... after you watch the show, email CBS to tell them how much you enjoyed it and how much you would enjoying seeing more shows about quilting. The email address (which she had some difficulty finding) is sundays@cbsnews.com.

The Polka Dot Rug

2008-03-12T18:30:00.003-05:00

Well, the rug is mostly dry so I brought it in and took a picture. You may not be able to tell, but the inside of my desk is painted the same shade of green as the rug.

The rug is not close enough to my design wall to be a problem. I think I'm going to like it!

A New Rug For My Studio

2008-03-12T17:34:00.005-05:00

I have laminate flooring all through my house. I realized last Saturday that my desk-chair-on-wheels has been making a circular mark on the floor in front of my computer. Oh no! Carpet won't work there because the wheels on the chair won't roll on carpet. I don't want to put one of those plastic things on my studio floor. What to do?

I painted a floor cloth (in my spare time, which I don't have any of). I don't know if any of you noticed the floor cloth instructions in our book Covered With Love but there are some. Painting floor cloths is really easy.

I started with a canvas drop cloth that I got at Lowe's. I used latex wall paint that I already have (I have a lot since I paint walls at the drop of a hat). I used an olive-green primer from the living room for the base coat. I used a satin latex in "parrot" (a Sherwin Williams color that I have used as an accent in many places in my house) for the top coat.

This morning I cut an apple in half and used it to stamp big blue polka dots on the rug. This afternoon I put a coat of polyurethane on it and it's on the driveway drying now. I'll post another picture after I get the finished rug in my studio.

The best part about painted floorcloths is that they are cheap and easy. They aren't soft, but they protect the floor and add color. If you decide you want to change the color, you can re-paint it. What's not to like!

Empty Spools

2008-03-08T17:39:00.002-06:00

I'm teaching at the Empty Spools seminar March 16-21. What a great place to go—both for teachers and students! I get to be both this year. I'm staying on for another week to take a 5-day class from Ruth McDowell after I teach for a week. I'm very excited!

Empty Spools is held at an historic conference center called Asilomar in Pacific Grove, CA, on the Monterey peninsula. Carmel is just minutes away. I'm from the land-locked prairie so I particularly enjoy any time spent at Asilomar.

If you've never heard of Empty Spools, I encourage you to check it out. Students take one 5-day class from one teacher. It's amazing what you can learn under these conditions. And the site is spectacular! It may be cold and rainy (I hope not but it is March after all) but I know it will be invigorating.

Where to look on the sewing machine...

2008-03-08T17:31:00.009-06:00

Linda and I each sew on Bernina's. Did you know that there is a little mark in front of the presser foot that marks the 1/4" line? I'm finding that if I keep my fabric lined up with that line and don't worry so much about the edge of the 1/4" foot, I get a more accurate seam. I don't know if other machines have the same kind of mark... but if they do, try using it. It's handy.

More Pin Cushions

2008-03-08T16:55:00.005-06:00

When I was out of applique to work on last week I made some new pin cushions from the wool beads we sell on our site. They are both easy and fun to make—a winning combo! A word to those of you with cats: Cats love these things! If you don't want them to play with your lovely pin cushions, you'd better hide them. In a drawer.

For the dotted ones, I cut ovals out of felt and felted them to the big wool ball. You can see that I also added some leaf shapes on 2 of them. Use the Clover felting tool or a felting needle to do the felting.

I'm calling the other ones "atomic" pin cushions. (Steve likes these the best.) I sewed small wool beads to the big wool bead with 3 strands of embroidery floss. Run the floss through the bead to each spot where you want to add a new bead.

I cut little squares of felt in contrasting colors to put at the outside of each of the little beads. As I pulled the floss tight, it gathered up the felt and cinched the little bead to the bigger one. Knot the floss out of sight at the base of one of the little beads. Too cute!

A Sneak Peek

2008-03-08T11:01:00.008-06:00

The snow is melting and the sun is out. It's hard to believe that yesterday morning we had 7" of snow on the ground.

I spent yesterday putting a new quilt up on the design wall. I was out of stitching (oh my!) and so I really did need to stop everything else I was supposed to be doing to work on this. Orange is sounding really good to me these days, so this one is predominantly orange. I bought the end of a bolt of a blue-with-orange-dots fabric by Kaffe Fassett earlier this week not knowing exactly where I might use it. That dot looks really good with the other oranges! You can see a bit of this quilt in the photo.

Orange may not immediately come to mind when you are working with blue, but it should. Orange is opposite blue on the color wheel. In the same way that red and green go together, so do blue and orange. They are very zing-y!

I love Saturday. My husband and I have cleaned the house (he does the stuff I don't like to do and I do the stuff he doesn't like to do which works out very well) and I have the rest of the day to work on loose ends. There are blocks to trim and set together. There is the manuscript for our next book to get back to. I know there's more... I'm going to have to look at that "to do" list. And our granddaughter, Elanor, is coming over later to spend the night! I think we're going to play with modeling clay.

Enjoy your day!

We're blogging!

2008-03-06T14:53:00.003-06:00

Hello! Welcome to the Piece O’ Cake blog! Linda and I have been talking about starting a blog for a long time and today is the day it’s happening. We’ll both be making posts and it is our hope that, through these posts, you get a chance to know us each a little better.

As I write this, the big news in Sherman, TX, is that it is snowing. Big flakes! This sort of weather event in Texas, in March, is unusual. We often get an Easter freeze (no sane person here plants annuals until after Easter) but this is sort of ridiculous. My cats are confused. They want to go out, but then their little feet hit the snow and it’s right back inside. Ten minutes later we do it again. Silly cats.

It’s sort of nice to be snowed in. My husband, Steve, called to say everyone who works at the college is going home and the students are out playing in the snow. I’m going to make a cup of tea and get to work putting the next project up on the design wall.