Hello 2013!

When last I left you, I was showing all the stuff I'd been working on for family, clients, and even myself.  I'd like to report that my clients were thrilled with all their work.  Especially the Civil War reproduction quilt.  I had picked out a fabric for the backing from Hancock's of Paducah, but they later wrote to tell me they were out of stock of that particular fabric.  Very frustrating.  So, I had to sit at the computer and spend another couple of hours finding a replacement.  Here is what I picked -

It is extra wide and will not need to be seamed to cover the whole back of the quilt.  I ordered this fabric from Keepsake Quilting.

I also showed the Prairie Schooler Christmas Eve piece that was stitched several years ago and never finished.  I had put the patchwork borders on it by the time I posted it last.  Now, it is finished.  I am really, really happy with it.

Not all the Woolrich Wool I'd purchased in a box-lot went to making Veteran's Christmas stockings.  My Great Britain friends can confirm this for me, I think that the plaid (tartan?) is called Royal Stewart.  I saved a huge batch of it.  I made a tablecloth for the dining room table, a cloth for a side table in my living room, and then I had a little more left.  I wanted it on my hunt scene needlepoint that was my take-along project last year.  I had also decided that I wanted to add a bit of leather to the pillow and I was going to go on the "hunt" to my local thrift shops.  How fortuitous that I was walking by my husband last weekend and he had a belt in his hand.  I must say, this usually excites me, but this time it was for a different reason!  I asked him what he was doing with the belt and he said he was tossing it.  I asked if I could have it and he, sweety that he is, gave it to me.  So, I did this -

and this -

Also, a bit ago, I showed you the Charles Craft linen I'd picked up for a dollar at the thrift shop and said I was going to do a pillow for my car.  Well, I finished the stiching some time ago, but it's been languishing to be turned into a pillow.  The car is as red as the trim, with black and silver interior.

I also mentioned that I'd found some old quilt squares and got quite a deal on them.  Well, I've decided what I'm going to do with them -

I will be looking in my quilt shop for some shirting prints that are similar in scale and color to what's used in these.  I'll use that for some borders just to get this sized right.

Above is a pillow.  It was designed by that Fredericksburg, Virginia designer whose name escapes me right now.  Each section has needlework and then all of them are stitched together to form the pillow top.  Clearly my spacing didn't work out too well.  But, I give myself a lot of credit for having it finished only two years after I finished the stitching.

 

I showed you the Blue Jay I did for my husband, over the summer; but I just finished the fantasy bird in the foreground.  These things are crazy to finish and I'm not sure I'll do anymore because of it.  I think I'd like to figure out a way to do them on linen which is much more forgiving to seam than Congress Cloth is.  I found it hard to get into the spirit of Christmas this year and finally, a week beforehand, put up my small tree.  I made the tree from a tomato cage and some lighted garland wrapped around it about fifty billion times.  I have some natural things hot glued onto it and when I use it, I only put a few extra ornaments on.  So this year I put on the candles (we don't light them) and the bird ornaments that I've collected over the years.  She was already taken down a couple of days ago, but sure was pretty while she lasted.

 The wool needlepoint Hershey Bar was my end-of-year take-along project.  I ended up putting it all together on Christmas Day and gave it to my husband that night as a belated present.  He absolutely loves it.  In fact, I have to get it back from him so I can take a picture of the finished product.  The backing I put on it was from a man's wool herringbone jacket.

We had a full moon this last week.  By "we", I mean all of us.  We (usn's here) had snow on Christmas Eve that gave us a White Christmas and also the day after Christmas.  So, when I took the dog out  a few days later, and saw this moon rise, I just had to get a picture of it.

I just love the blue glow that I say you can only get when you have
 snow on the ground.



So, above is when the dog went out (I ran into the house and grabbed the camera quick before I lost the shot!).

And here on the right is about five minutes later.  Within thirty minutes, the whole thing had disappeared into the clouds and was gone.

Before I go, I've had a terrible time with my laptop lately.  For the last couple months actually.

I bought myself a new one before Christmas.  But, that one had Windows 8 on it.  Windows 8 is made to operate like a phone.  I am still in shock when I say that .  Microsoft decided that it was a brilliant idea to cater to the crowd who are still living in their parents basements when they designed their new operating system.  I am a pretty savvy home computer user.  but I knew it was bad when I actually had to do an online search to find out how to POWER DOWN THE LAPTOP.  Turns out that Microsoft has just arbitrarily decided that people don't really need to turn off their PCs.  The problem is that you are not supposed to move a laptop from place to place without powering it down.  It would be like taking your record player - while it was playing your favorite Beatles album - and moving it from your bedroom (upstairs) to your basement two stories down.  You are just not supposed to do that.  Just like a "lap" top is not really meant to be sitting on your lap.   I thought I was going to LOVE LOVE LOVE my new laptop and it really turned  out to be HATE HATE HATE.  I really, really mean it.  The straw that broke the camel's back was when I tried to load on my photo editing software and my family tree software and it would not load.  I am not a person who is often without words, let alone speech, but I sat there speechless when this occurred.

I have since sold the new computer to someone for what I bought it for.  I think I have decided to go buy an Apple Mac.  I have no experience with a Mac operating system, so I am going to see someone tomorrow and ask about ten million questions.  I am hoping that I can get lucky and find someone who is selling a new laptop with Windows 7 on it.  I could get that cheaper and also, it will give me the time I  need to save my moo-lah and make a final decision about whether or not I want to buy a Mac.  I am told that Mac is SO much easier.  But, when you've been a Windows user for the last 30 years - and before that writing programs in CPM (that was what they had before there were windows), I think that the transition may be more difficult.  Anyway, I just wanted to warn you all - IF any of you are looking for a new PC and you're looking at one with Windows 8, be VERY VERY WARY.  My husband says (he who is the Techno-Geek) that there's a reason they are doing the advertising blitz that they are now doing.  He says there's been a lot of push-back against Microsoft because Windows 8 is nearly universally despised.  I have to say, it took me a long time to find a positive review of Windows 8 when I was looking online and I think that one positive review was made by a Microsoft employee. 

Hope you enjoyed.  Next time, pictures of  Patty O'Quilt - the one in the making for my granddaughter, a hopefully - so much more!