The success of this technique, I think, depends a lot on the fabric choices. You have to be willing to audition and reject those that just don’t quite do the job.

(June 15 – have been having computer problems and apparently this photo is lost. Imagine lots of little pieces, all in a pile with hopes that they might be recut to fit somewhere else)

All of those little bits at the upper left are some of the pieces that weren’t quite right for the spot they were cut for. They may work somewhere else later but they may be too small to re-cut and will end up in the trash. That’s OK.  Better to trash them than to use them if they are not right.

Yesterday I finished the piecing of the dogs and put away all that fabric. The cutting table looks so much better and I have room to play with the big background pieces. I have a wonderful hand dye, bought at Festival in Houston with the background of this piece in mind. It is gray and white and will work great, I think, for the snowy background. But it is only one yard, probably not enough. Challenges like that keep things interesting!

I knew it had been a while since I’ve posted but I didn’t think it had been THAT long! I have been having a very tenuous connection to the internet lately, sometimes going for days without being able to get online. I finally called for a technician to come out and investigate and after he found and fixed a couple of problems, now it works like a charm!

We’ve also had water problems, probably due to the extremely dry soil the pipes had a leak somewhere between the road and the house which involved digging equipment and considerable time, but now, over sixteen hundred dollars later we are leak free. What next??

I have managed, most days to sew at least a few seams and the dog’s portrait is progressing nicely. The process is slow as the Komondor’s corded coat requires many seams and color changes.

 

Between sewing sessions I have made some show entries, written a magazine article, caught up on emails and orders that piled up during the offline time and worked on the account books, so I have not been just laying around!

The weather has been alternately freezing cold and Springlike and in the garden the Snowdrops are blooming and the Lenten Rose is sending up buds. I can’t get used to flowers in January.

A portion of The Seasonal Palette exhibit is currently being shown at the Texas Quilt Museum. This is a lovely, well lit space.  Some of the walls are white but I love how December Dawn looks on this old brick wall! Unfortunately the space was not large enough for the whole collection to be shown and only 23 of the 37 quilts were selected. Quilts shown left to right:  Ice by Carol J Moore, Silent Snow, The Creek Is Singing by Carol Anne Grotrian, Snow Falls by Linda Colsh, December Dawn by Ruth Powers, Sparkling Forest by Marianne R Williamson. Photo by Vicki Mangum.

The past week has been so cold I just want to stay inside and sew! Progress is slow as the pieces are small and many. I find myself needing to make lots of changes to get necessary contrasts and light effects. But the deadline is not close so I can just take my time and work a section at a time.

While I was shopping at Festival at Houston, I found buttons for this baby sweater that I made for a friend’s new little baby boy. Now that the baby has arrived and the gift is given I can share it with you.

This sweater was unique, in that it is made all in one piece and the only seams are at the top of the sleeves, it was a fun challenge to make it and I think it will be my “go to” baby sweater pattern from now on. I thought I was lucky to find these perfect little buttons, every one different.