Recent Quilts

Yesterday, I finally sent baby quilts off to twin Scottish boys born before Christmas. I finished this watercolor one earlier this week. It has lots of blues and greens, colors which I'm partial to- maybe I'm trying to influence the color preferences of wee Cormac or Lorcan?



The quilt displayed by Ray (below) was made in a hurry when we found out a regular customer at Henry's Diner had cancer. The lighter squares represent the diner's tables and we had patrons sign them. The long strips between the tables represent the rug or aisles. The quilt was given to Sheila Brown (even before the quilting was completed) and we heard that she put it right on her bed. Within days, she died, and the quilt was passed on to Margaret, the lady she always sat with at the diner. Hopefully, Sheila left this world, knowing that she had a family of friends at the diner, people who cared about her. Her daily presence will be missed.We miss your colorful hats and your running commentary and your daily witty exchanges with our favorite waitress.

Snowdrops! Crocus! Spring! Oh, my!

It's nearly Spring according to the calendar, but it's showing up in my front border already as long awaited first blooms are popping open. What a sigh of relief! Winter is over! Hurray! Hurray!

Show time

My Saturday reception went well! A nice mix of friends, quilters, line dancers, gardeners, family and even a few strangers showed up to see what I've been quietly doing for the last twenty years. The cookies and punch are gone, but the show remains in the community room of the Sidney Library through the end of March. The most commonly asked question at the show was, "What will you do with them next?" and the answer is, "Fold them up, and store them in trash bags in my sewing room." (Unless I get ambitious and try to show them at an Art walk venue in Binghamton later this summer, or unless the loft gallery at the Farmer's Museum in Cooperstown is interested... but that's more work).









I even found out who sent the beautiful mystery flowers- thank you, Janet W!

Back from Philly

Made my annual trek to the Philadelphia Flower Show yesterday. Three packed buses organized by Cornell Cooperative Extension in Binghamton shuttled us safely to Philly and back, leaving at 7 AM and returning about 11:30 PM. The show was dazzling, themed Bella Italia (Beautiful Italy),dripping with a profusion of colors and teaming with flower admirers of all ages, mostly women, mostly older, like myself. It's impossible to see everything, but I ran around, snapping pictures, getting a feel for the overall displays, some of which were beyond my wildest imagination. I really liked the Botanical illustrations and pressed flower pictures and window boxes, and overblown, jaw dropping flower arrangements. I also enjoyed seeing the people admiring the displays, the older couples, pointing out every nuanced detail to each other, the small groups of Amish women traveling in tight little flocks,and friends, snapping each others' photos against gorgeous backdrops of flowers. I always enjoy going alone and setting my own pace, sometimes dashing around quickly to get an overall impression of the show and theme, sometimes limping along as my feet start hurting from wearing the wrong shoes. I spent a couple hours, resting my feet, listening to two flower arranging lectures in the afternoon.























When I returned to the show area to take one last look around before boarding the bus at six, I spotted Lisa, a fellow blogger and Flickr contact, zeroing in with her camera on the magnificent floral arrangement at the entrance. I'd seen her pictures on the web, (I discovered her when I searched for Philadelphia Flower show photos last year, and I've been a faithful reader of her great blog ever since). I thought it might be her, it kinda looked like her, she was toting a camera and wearing comfy looking boots (her trademark), but I wasn't positive. Hmmm. I knew she'd be going to the show, but thought she'd be going Wed instead of Tuesday. Finally, asked if she was Lisa; she was! We snapped photos, I was excited and nervous, so didn't do very well holding out the camera for a quick pic of both of us, but it made my day! She's just as genuine and warm as her blog, a very real, cool, talented person and inspiration. Sending out good wishes for her and Mark and extended friends and family.





My new camera batteries died shortly after that, so I just walked around again, absorbing the sights, smelling the heavy, damp, scent of flowers and picked out one more bouquet of inexpensive roses to add to the other two I had in my bag.

Each picture tells a story

Spring is beginning! Last week, during a momentary snow melt, I glimpsed snowdrops in my front border!





Neighbors passing by this weekend probably commented that we've emerged from hibernation as we sat on our sunny (but chilly) porch steps Saturday with steaming bowls of chicken gumbo.



Today, I finally hung my show I've been working on for 20 years to draw and 3 years to convert into wall hangings. All twenty quilts just fit into the Fred and Irene Smart Community Room at the Sidney Pubic Memorial Library. I took the liberty of rearranging some library coat rack units and moving some chairs and large speakers. My homemade hanging wires worked perfectly, as did the shower curtain rings attached to furring strips that I inserted into hanging sleeves on the top of each quilt. I never saw all my calendar drawings (240 total over 20 years) all in one place, and it's neat to see the results of plugging away everyday, drawing one line at a time. They add up! My quilting friend, Karen, popped in just as I finished "installing" the show, and I enjoyed mentioning the stories some of the images brought to mind. I look at them and remember when I took the photos, which child was riding shotgun with me on our "looking" rides, sitting in the corner of the living room at a TV tray or table, drawing, taking the finished product to Printer Dave, or more recently, printing each calendar on my laser printer and assembling it by hand. A good many of them are passed out at family reunions- They are truly a labor of love.