My husband is doing well but is of course quite bored! I am finding out how much he really did for me before, which made it possible for me to do the quilting things that I love to do. I have been so busy doing all of the routine things, cooking, cleaning, even cleaning the pump and filters for the fish pond that I have had very little time to sew.

I had finished the freezer paper pattern which involves converting the printout of the original photograph by Tammy Patterson (click on “Elk” in the tags to go back to info about the photo and the “why” of this piece) to the large format before the accident. First I enlarged that and converted it to black and white and with tracing paper figured out where the sewing lines could be. That was enlarged again and transferred to overhead projector film.

This was projected up on the freezer paper which had been prepared to the final dimensions – I think about 41 x 46 ish. All of the lines are then copied to the paper side of the freezer paper in the mirror image of the finished piece so that when these pieces are cut out and ironed onto the wrong side of the fabric, you will get the proper orientation.

These are the fabrics that I pulled from my stash to start with. I will not use them all and may add different ones as I go along but I don’t think I will need to shop for more this time.

This past week I have not had a lot of time to sew, but I am pretty happy with what I have made so far.

It’s been a heck of a week! Here’s the short version: Going to town last Friday, the car malfunctioned but since it was still going and we had a dog with us and it was hot we continued on to town. We totally ruined the braking system and had to have the car towed to the garage. They didn’t get to it until Tuesday when we found out that it was going to be quite expensive and a week and a half before it could be fixed. Long story short, we bought another car!

Then, later that same day my husband fell and after about 8 hours in the ER he was admitted to ICU with spinal cord trauma- nothing broken, thank goodness. Yesterday he was transferred out of ICU and will probably come home today with a neck brace for three weeks. Then they will decide if he will need surgery.

Needless to say, I have not started the Elk yet!

I love to use art quilts in my decorating. I like that they are usually large, colorful, and graphic, yet bring a softness.

“Prairie Fire” was made to fill this space in the living room where previously I had four small framed counted cross stitch pictures. Eventually I would like to make the scene to show other seasons.

Hanging in the dining room currently, is this piece by Ruth McDowell, “Watermelon Chickens”,  on loan from the Thomas Contemporary Quilt Collection. Amazing selections of fabrics, as usual!

I finished the Stephen King book in two days! The weather was perfect for laying out in the hammock with a good book so that’s what I did. Summer makes me think of raspberries and Stephen King. I was at Sam’s the other day and there was his “Just After Sunset”, another collection of short stories that I had somehow missed for only $4.66!!
I’m half way through it. The first of the black raspberries are ripe; it’s summer!

Yesterday I updated my website. I knew I was behind but I didn’t know I was THAT behind! I added SIX new quilts for sale. And updated the rest of it. Check it out…….

June must be a month for Charity Auctions! Earlier in the month The Helping Hands Humane Society where my daughter is a Foster “mom” had their fundraiser and I donated this little Border Terrier piece mounted on canvas.

Last night was the Shooting Star Horse Rescue Auction and I was the featured artist so of course we went to that one! I had donated Dogwood Pasture

Detail shot

and it went for more than the reserve that I had set on it. I was outbid on the two things that I bid on, but I did get a lovely necklace in the Silent Auction. It was a fun and rewarding evening!

We’ve had several days in a row of hot, hot weather and drying winds. This happens every year; plants are accustomed to plenty of rain and cool then they get hit with just the opposite. I gave everything a good watering yesterday evening. This weather puts a damper on me too. No energy to do anything. I picked up the newest Stephen King book, “Full Dark – No Stars” yesterday at the library and now I just want to read it!

A while back I submitted some quilts to a new book by Mary Kerr, “Designs in Art Quilts” And mine along with 47 others were accepted! Not sure when the book will be finished, but it looks like there will be a nice mix of styles and techniques included with lots of pictures.

I thought it might be fun to make a quilt based on Kansas wildflowers, so this morning I picked a sampling of what is blooming now. Even at 9 o’clock it was over 80 and they wilted and some even lost petals even though I did bring a container of water for them!

I guess I will need to stop giving the computer the coolest hours of the day if I am going to get my walking in!

YES!! There was NO spam this morning, just real messages from real friends! What a relief…… Loretta, all three of yours came through fine.

Yesterday I had a machine quilting class at Stitching Traditions in Topeka, what a fun group of ladies. Makes me want to get sewing again and I am nearly ready to get started.

What’s up next? I’m planning to do an Elk.

Photo by Tammy Patterson © 2009 all rights reserved.

The photo was taken by the same photographer that took last year’s Mountain Goat Kids and it needs to be finished by fall for another “Inspirations” exhibit. That’s the collaborative one where the artist interprets a photographer’s work and I am so lucky to be working with Tammy again!

I have been inundated with spam from this website. 30-50 per day! So we have set an anti-spam filter, I think when you comment you will be asked what month it is just to sort the real people from the machines. I am sorry for any inconvenience but I hope it will be worthwhile. Let me know how it goes!

The current juried and judged show “Embracing Our Heritage” a celebration of Kansas’ 150th birthday is up at the Topeka Art Guild Gallery through to the end of July. I just got the word that one of my entries “The Old Homestead” was awarded first prize!!

The Old Homestead         56.5 X 49.5              $4,000.00

This quilt toured for a year with “Tactile Architecture” and again with SAQA’s “Points Of View” where it won a Viewer’s Choice Award. It has been seen all over this country in these and other shows and twice in France!  If you are in the area please come by TAG to see this one and “Mon Grand Pere” as well as all of the other wonderful entries to “Embracing Our Heritage”.  I will be working today at the gallery from 2-8.