My ghost story......

When my mom was young my Grandma and Grandpa moved into a house in Manzanita Oregon. They lived there the rest of their lives and I spent many hours in the house...it is a big house with a main floor, and unfinished basement and then the upstairs with two bedrooms, a tiny little bathroom and a sitting area at the top of the landing..my mom slept on the bedroom on the right and she told me she never liked it because she saw ghosts come from the cubbyhole in the room and up the stairs. She also told me that there were a few times where she wet the bed because she was too afraid to get up and go to the bathroom. As a kid, when I went to stay with my grandparents, I would stay in the other bedroom. After my grandparents passed away, my parents remodeled the house and moved in it. I went down for a weekend and that was the only bedroom available so I slept in it...It felt strange but I wasnt too worried...after all, I was about 35 at the time. I went to sleep thinking about my grandma and how much I missed her..I had the best dream that night..she was sitting on the bed and stroking my head and talking...Great dream, I didnt want to wake up. When I woke up, I noticed the whole room smelled like flowers..I hadnt noticed it the night before which was weird..It was so strong and pretty that I actually looked for a glade plug in or some kind of room freshener. I went down and asked my mom about it and she gave me a strange look...We went up together and the fragrance was still there. She got a weird look on her face and said it smelled just like a perfume that my grandma wore when she was a kid and then the smell just went away...We both just smiled all day...that night I went to bed feeling pretty good and I went to sleep. I woke up about three in the morning freezing cold...I felt someone in the room with me and thought, "grandma?' All of a sudden, I felt the hair stand up on my arms and I felt choked for air...I could hear breathing and felt something bad, real bad was in the room...I felt frozen and terrified..I finally got up and raced down the stairs and got in bed with my mom...."mom can I sleep with you? I'm scared......My dad scoffed and laughed but later on after my mom had died, he moved for a short time into that room and then he moved out and into the other room...the ghost would turn the wall heater on high in the middle of the night...a fire also started in that room...he wont say much else about it....creepy and true!

ornament swap, ghost story Friday and Finishes....

What are finishes? It is when you get a project done! The best feeling in the world, and yesterday I finished several of them and it feels good.....I finished my charms for the Amusing Muses charm swap...I made little tiles and a few fabric ones with beads.






Here are my charms all packaged up and ready to go.....







I made two sets of pillowcases for Barb in American Samoa...There are some villages there that still are having a really hard time and she has become the blogging distributor for that area...I also am sending a set of sheets, and some toiletries...Most families have lost everything so she has put out the call...If you are interested in doing something, please leave me a comment stating so and I will direct you to her....Barb even gave her Janome sewing machine to a lady who had lost hers....I always want to do something huge, cause I feel so bad but sometimes I can only do something little....If you are in the same situation, do something small and all of our small things will add up to really big things....thanks again Barb for making me aware of the need and you can find her at http://bejeweledquilts.blogspot.com







I also finished a 6x8 quiltie for Mary S from Australia....It is part of our round robin quiltie group and her theme is vintage with soft colors...This is probably one of the most popular themes out there for altered art and one of the hardest for me...I think it is the color schemes that throw me...I am more of a "retro girl.....by retro I mean 40's, 50's and 60's...I love the color schemes, the kitschy stuff and the old trailers!!!!!! Anyway, this is what I came up with....




Last of all, two fun events for bloggers....First of all Laurie from http://indulgeyourshelf.blogspot.com is having a ghost story telling on Friday.....It is going to be SCARY for sure......Go visit her to play and then we all can share scary stories on Friday!! I have a couple of really good ones to share...Phantom Friday!!!!!!I cant wait....









Then Val is hosting a Woodland Ornament swap that will be really fun...It is for a handmade ornament, woodland themed and a treat for your secret swap partner...Just something fun and easy and she is a great hostess....you can sign up at http://yarnisgrasswapperspot.blogspot.com

pillows and naps...

I finally caught a picture of Cooper with the little kitten, Joe Bobbin curled up with him..Every time I get a camera, Cooper leaps up and grabs his blue stuffed bunny...The only time it isn't in his mouth is when he is asleep. I think he has OCD...bunny obsession...weird. Anyway, Aren't they adorable....Thomas is off sulking somewhere, otherwise he would be in the picture too!



Today was project day around here...We are still working on the upstairs...The floor was ripped up and put back together and I primed the stairs...It has been fun seeing it come together. When it is done, I will definitely post pictures...I am excited for the kids to see it finished. I also spent a lot of time sewing and crafting....I am working on charms, I made a little bird quilt, started on pillowcases to send to Samoa and made two fall pillows....I won Jenny's drawing and it was the dishtowels by Moda that I used. (posted a pic a few days ago)..We were emailing back and forth and she said she envisioned them as pillows...WOW! what a great idea..so I had to take the challenge and whip them up...I always save throw pillows, even when they are outdated..I run them thru the washer and then slipcover them....




Aren't they adorable!!!!! Here are the backside of the pillows....There were three towels so I just pieced them together, and made envelope backs...The only thing I added to the towels was some orange rick rack...I love these! Thank you for the great idea Jenny, and the towels!!!!!




Thank you for all your congratulations! Don and I don't have anything set in stone yet as far as a wedding date..We are thinking February and something in Las Vegas...I am going thru some really rough times, but I am still happy..It is wonderful to be extraordinarily in love with an ordinary guy and have him feel the same way about me....

I got something beautiful and special today........

My heart is too full to say much about it, so I will just show the picture.......

fancy cuffs and I won a prize!!!!

First of all, I love surprises! What girl doesnt? I dont care how old you are...I found the greatest blog...The bloggers name is Jenny and I think she found me first, but I visited and had a good laugh. She is a really good writer and I enjoy her perspective on ordinary things...I became a follower, just cause everyone needs a good laugh. I also commented on a little contest she was having..You didnt have to post on your blog, or become a follower. Just make a guess. I did and I won! Can you believe it? The gift was a surprise, and today it came in the mail...It has the most adorable fall card and these gorgeous Fall towels from Moda...

I love the detail of the towels on the bottom....

The middle one is my fave! Thank you so much Jenny! You made my day...Go visit her at http://jennymattok.blogspot.com
At Fiber Art Traders, a Yahoo group that is pretty fun, there is a trade for embellished cuffs..You wear them like bracelets and they are really fun. We are making them without closures, cause the person who gets yours will fit it to their wrist...I made mine with silks...they are nice and shiny and sparkly. I am all about that.....
Other than that, I am still really battling depression and anxiety and it has been a rough road...I am doing everything I can to get better but it almost makes it worse before it gets better...Art really does help and having someone that loves and supports me even when I am a sobby, snotty mess and a half. We are working on a project together and that is good therapy too...In the house there is an upstairs where the eaves go to the floor...one huge part of it was finished and that is my little studio. The other part is at the top of the stairs and it just was a mess...so we made storage behind the sheet rock and put down flooring...then we have been ripping and tearing and cleaning up the other room. It is going to be a play room/ bedroom for the grandkids...I am doing it in orange and turquoise and a sea green floor....It is already adorable..I will post before and afters when it is done...Now I just need my babies to put in it and I would be thrilled!!!!

From start to finish..

I finished the quilt with the Tumbleweed in it and for the first time, I documented the process of making an art quilt...I have been asked how I do it, and it is hard to explain...I thought about it and took lots of pictures....What I wanted to do, was make a background for the quilted little trailer to sit on. First I cut a piece of cotton duck to put the background on. I knew I wanted this quilt to be big..Way bigger for an art quilt than I normally do, so I cut it 25"wide by 36" long..Why, I don't know, it just looked right...Then I dug through my scraps of fabric looking for pieces that look like scenery fabric. I knew I wanted a woodsy type scene and also wanted some of it to look like fields. I love how they look like patchwork quilts in the distance...I also wanted some kind of road meandering up to the top...I started cutting and laying pieces of fabric down until I was happy..Then I use a temporary spray adhesive to adhere it all down so I can move it around until I sew it...Here is what it looks like...( you can click on all these pictures to make it bigger...)
The next step was to start sewing..The hardest part of the sewing was the big tree...I kind of penciled it in on the fabric, dropped the feed dogs and sewed..Then I decided to add some Neocolor twos to add some color. It didn't work and muddied it up. I then threw some alcohol inks on it, just letting the drops hit it and then I went in with red and fuchsia threads and did loops to look like fall foliage..The rest of the fabrics I just really tried to follow the lines and put some curves in. When I do this much thread work, I don't put a fabric back on...I do it at the end. So what I am quilting on is the fabric laid down on the cotton duck and batting on the back...This is what it looked like when I was done with all the stitching..
and here is what it looks like from the back.../>
I then sewed down the 3d trailer piece that I showed in the previous post and decided it needed something else...I decided to put Coopers head somewhere on the bottom of the quilt...I traced it on a piece of yellow wool felt and free motioned the details..then I cut it out and added the red scarf which I thought looked cute hanging over the edge..Then I cut another piece of cotton duck for the back, used spray adhesive to stick it and then did a 2 and a quarter inch binding....All in all, this is way more sewing than I usually do! I think I put six or seven real hours in doing this quilt...Here is the finished project..What do you think? I am calling it "lets camp"....

The start of an art quilt....

OK, remember when I said I was Vintage trailer obsessed in my seven things list? Well, I am and this proves it..I started an art quilt centered around the Tumbleweed and how I want to paint him...Red on the top, yellow emblem, a paint horse section,and shiny white...The quilted trailer is lying on a piece of wool felt that I use as a background...then I pencil it in on a piece of white fabric and free motion sew the outlines, then I cut it out and start on the details...He isn't totally done yet, but once he is finished, I will make a background quilt to put him on...I am thinking of a road winding along the ocean. Why I do these kind of things, I have no idea but I smile the whole time and I guess that is what it is all about...Maybe I will get it finished tomorrow!

My new baby is home and ornament quilt blocks....

First of all the blocks...These are so easy to make, but I am not getting them five inches square..I am wondering if I am not reading the cutting dimensions right...Robin, who is hosting the swap, has the cutest Halloween background on her blog that is purple..Unfortunately I cant read the writing..I am going to have to check with her..They are awful cute though...You write your signature in the middle..I am going to make a table runner with my finished blocks....
Now for my news....drumroll.....the baby is here..No, he doesn't have four legs or fur, it is not a vegetable, animal or mineral or a person for that matter..But boy am I excited! Let me introduce you to Tumbleweed!!!!!

He is my new to me , 1961 vintage Deville trailer and he is in wonderful shape...
All the original appliances, and furnishing and he is 15 feet of lovely potential! I am so excited to turn him into in traveling art gallery...cowboy themed...

My fascination with vintage trailers started about five years ago when I met a quilter who with a bunch of friends traveled in themed, restored vintage trailers..She showed me pictures and I was just blown away. I just have never been settled enough to be able to do it! The group of quilters were inspired by "sisters on the fly". They now have over a thousand members and as soon as Tumbleweed is ready, I am going to be one of them...You can see their website at www.sistersonthefly.com Another great site with wonderful pictures to ogle is http://thevintagehousewife.blogspot.com

As you can see, cooper is pretty excited too..He loves camping and he says he will wear a red bandanna so he fits in with the theme...The great news, is it is in great shape...One spot of dry rot that already is repaired as of today. I wont bore you anymore going on and on but I will do picture updates as work progresses....

Art quilts and over the hump...

I had a very rough few days but now I am back with a smile on my face and ready to rejoin the world...I hit rock bottom over the kids being back with mom..It is funny how sometimes feelings are delayed...I knew the grief was in there, I just wasnt letting it out cause it felt so big it was scary. I felt like if I let a little out, it might all come pouring out and somehow I might get lost in it...Here is the deal...Me raising the kids for two years was a lose, lose situation for me...It didnt start out that way...To back up I got them when Andrew was 18 months and liv was 6...I look at my nephew Jace, who is just over a year and I am shocked that Andrew was that little...It was tough, I walked the floor with him, liv cried for her mom everytime she was upset and I just went day to day...But in those first few days, weeks and months I had hope...I figured I am watching them while she uses the time to get better. Except she wasnt and it started to show...Christmas comes (a deadline in my mind...what mom wouldnt be there for Christmas? ) birthdays, school things, then Ron died..still nothing..Then my thinking changed..I am now their mother and father and this is where the lose/lose comes in for me...if she doesnt get better, I am going to raise them by myself and it is going to be soooo hard and if she does get better, they are going to be ripped away from me and my heart is going to go with them. Am I saying that this isnt where the kids belong, back with mom? No, becuase I am happy for them...It just hurts so darn bad you guys...so bad, it is like physical pain...She doesnt have them call me and it is just like I went from full time mom to nothing...I did talk to Andrew the other day( the first time since the end of July) and I just had tears streaming down my face the whole time. I spent a day and a half in bed just crying and praying and trying to come to terms with this whole thing...I am doing better right now...I know why God brought me to Utah...I have the best man in the world in my life and I am so grateful. He shares my sadness and helps me here and prays for me and reminds me to do the same...Ok, enough of this...just feel like a lot of you have been on this journey of raising grandbabies with me and wanted to share....
I keep posting pictures of quilties that I am making for a round robin swap so I thought I would post some of the ones made for me so far...My theme is Red, black and white...open to whatever the artist wants to do....
These are the first three quilties that I got....A red shiny flower on a background of pristine white with the finest little stitches by Judy Ross...I just love how dainty it is , cause it is the exact oposite of something I would do.....Then in the back is this beautiful, textured piece by Holly...I love the muslin edges and I think the whole thing just comes together...The quilite on the right is by one of my very good friends, Marva...she knows I like "stuff" and she did me proud...she is a beautiful sketcher and crazy quilter and she captured what I like just perfect! I also had to show the front and backs of the quilties that my good friend Sanna and I made for each other...We put our hearts in this stuff and go to town. I think the way we put things together kind of in the same way. Earlier you saw the front of her bird piece but I am going to show it again and this time show the back too...her tag is a birds egg...

Now here is the quiltie she made for me...all the little jesters are handpainted on canvas, then sewn on...


Last of all I am showing a picture of an art quilt I just made...An experiment that worked..YAY! I actually quilted, sewed and painted a picture of BF and I ...the pic was taken on my birthday...We were out dancing and he held out his arm and took this picture of the both of us...the white is his cowboy hat..I thought it wouldnt hurt to try to do it...I sketched it in pencil on a piece of wool felt then started painting and stitching...then when it was done I cut it out..Then I made a Utah canyon background out of fabric, paint and stitches and sewed the portrait on...It's called Love in the canyon....cool huh? I am going to mat and frame it....He loves it by the way....
Also, just have to add that today is a very exciting day here at my house!!! I am bringing home a new baby to love and care for...Any ideas? you will have to wait and see!!!!!

Quilt for Baby Adeline is done...

It is all wrapped up in baby pink tulle and ready to send to her mama tomorrow..She is ready to be born anytime..is there anything better than a new baby? I am blown away by the whole miracle of life...I hope you both love it Jessica!
I also was tagged and given an award by Valerie at http://yarnigras.blogspot.com
She is one of the nicest people, has a truly talented budding artist for a daughter and she is a lot of fun. I met her thru apron swaps, and she has become a good friend! Thank you Val!!! The rules are: 1. Thank the person who gave this to you. 2. copy the logo and place it on your blog. 3.link to the person who nominated you. 4. name seven things about yourself no one would really know. 5.nominate 7 kreative bloggers. 6. post links to the seven blogs...7.Leave a comment on each blog letting them know you have nominated them...Ok, on to my seven things....
1. I didnt learn to drive until I was 26
2.I dont like pizza...I hated it when I was a kid, it was right up there with liver.
3. I am obsessed with vintage trailers right now..OBSESSED
4. I play the saxophone
5. I come from a family of hypochondriacs to the point where it is funny
6. I only get two or three grey hairs...moms side of the family were never grey
7. I cant whistle, at all...I think my tongue is deformed..hee hee, or maybe something is wrong with it..like some disease...(see number five above..)
Who do I pass this lovely award too? mmmm....first of all Jessica at http://kidsnappinimscrappin.blogspot.com She makes some darn cool paper bag albums...one of these days I know I will make one, cause she has an amazing tutorial...Then on to Robin at http://rsislandcrafts.blogspot.com Robin is having giveaways so you need to go there anyway...I am looking forward to getting to know her better. I have to nominate Sherry because our answers are always so similar it is kind of eerie, and I want to see what she has to say and cause I love her..http://ificouldsetmysoulfree.blogspot.com I also am going to tag her daughter Lexie..She is raising a little guy and going to school and I am as proud of her as Sherry,...close anyway!...http://alexiskirker.blogspot.com I will think some more and post the res tomorrow cause my fingers are tired!!!!! Ok, I am adding to the list now.... First of all Miss Colleen the Utah Grammie...(yeah, the one who won the the quilt)..her sense of humor and writing style has kept me coming back for more of her blog...she is funny you all, seriously funny! http://mainstreammemories.blogspot.com Then there is my new friend Karen...I love her name, Mrs. Sew and Sew....She also has a new grandbaby that is a doll and you can find her at http://mrssewandsewquilts.blogspot.com and last of all a new friend in Ireland who makes beautiful things...Micki of Irish muses....go see her at http://thedote.blogspot.com

Witches cupboard swap and a block swap!

I got the scariest package ever from Tammy at http://sweetsews.blogspot.com It was all part of the fun thanks to Valerie's "Witches Cupboard Swap"! Some scary skulls and hairy spiders, cookie cutters, skull plates and napkins and the best handmade Halloween journal that I just adore! I can use it to jot down spells and recipes..Thanks so much Tammy..I love it all and it was so fun to open...especially since I had my sister and my niece as an audience and they wanted to know why I was getting all this cool stuff! Also, thank you Val for hostessing....I also wanted to mention that I made a new friend named Robin...Her blog is http://rsislandcrafts.blogspot.com She is having thirteen days of giveaways and also hostessing a quilt block swap that I have joined. It is a signature Christmas tree ornament swap...the block is five inches and very simple..She is looking for swappers to join up until October fifteenth. It makes the cutest quilt..look at the picture...You can go to her blog to join or to find out more...Other than that, today has been the laziest day in the world and I am loving it...Yesterday boyfriend and I ran around all day and I am tired. We went to a car show, and then a pumpkins and harvest craft fair and then we went to a japanese place to eat...I decided to be adventurous and try some sushi that I hadnt had before...It was all good until BF made a comment about how it smelled just like the fishing docks at LaPush....EEEEWWWWW...The sushi eating was all downhill after that but it was worth a good laugh. In fact my cheeks are still sore from smiling...Today the only ambitious thing I have done is I did a load of laundry..and I baked a cake..

nature journal pages....

This is for my Amusing Muses group...We are having a nature journal round robin so I played with the idea of Spring...I love the colors and I so miss them every winter...In fact, let's just skip the whole winter thing and go straight to the colors and rebirth that spring means...Monday it was in the 80's here and then the last three days it has really cooled down. There is snow on the mountains surrounding us...How did it happen so fast? I am sooo not a winter person.

What I made today....

A whole outfit! I know, I cant believe it either and I actually enjoyed the process...The top is a simple v neck knit and I used a pattern that someone gave me. The skirt, I just made up, and the bag, I tried to follow a pattern and then said forget it, wadded it up and made it the way I wanted too..The great news...The whole thing cost me a buck...yep, a dollar. The cheap in me just loves it...I got both the black and red print at a garage sale this summer for 1.00. The rest of the stuff I had. The bag I embellished the heck out of and just played with trims and stitches. It is lined in red with white polka dot flannel that was the trim off a pair of pj bottoms that I made. I have a really cool black jacket and a pair of boots that I think this would look pretty cute with. I also got a package today in the mail with Halloween goodies...I will post a picture in the morning!My home ec teacher, God love her, would have a stroke for sure...