Monday, October 2, 2017

Resist and Persist!

I woke up this morning to bright sunny skies and a beautiful fall day in Phoenix. I turned on the computer and read a blog posted by my friend, Sandy.

Sandy wonders - "What will this post on my not-widely-read blog accomplish? Nothing, I’m afraid. Only our government representatives can pass laws to assure help for the mentally ill or to get automatic guns out of private hands. We absolutely must push for them to do exactly that."

I often wonder the same thing when I call, write or email my elected representatives. What can one phone call do? What can one letter do? Probably not much BUT many calls, letters and emails to our elected Congressional representatives does work, maybe not right away but persistent pressure DOES WORK! I decided to support Sandy's blog post by posting to my not-widely-read blog.

How many mass shootings will it take for the United States Congress to pass common sense gun control legislation? When will the United States Congress stand up to the NRA? When is enough really enough?

Sunday, October 1, 2017

Solstice Dream - Nest Building and Big Bloom

I took a week off from stitching September Fresh Cut BOM, I was able to finished blocks 9 and 10 of Solstice Dream.
Nest Building
Nest Building
I always go a bit crazy stitching drizzle stitches, I love to just pack them in.

Big Bloom
I fell in love with the colors of Morning on the Seine silken pearl which was used to stitch the cast on bullions and crested chain around the cotton appliqués on the petals.

Blocks 9 and 10Blocks 1 - 10

Just had to post latest picture of Lillie. She is getting bigger everyday. Lillie is 17 weeks old and now about 25 pounds. She is getting too big for a small dog bed but she did manage to curl up small enough to fit this morning.

Lillie on the small bed (1)

Thursday, September 21, 2017

This might be a problem

Yes, this might be a problem. I definitely think this is a problem as I do not know where this wire came from!

This might be a problem

Do you think this angelic face might be responsible for the current problem?
Angelic face

Katie and Molly vote GUILTY! GUILTY! GUILTY!
Not guilty

Solistice Dream - Woven Petals and Pollen Gathering

I have been stitching quite a bit lately, I have more projects started than normal and I want to finish Solstice Dream before the end of 2017. I finished stitching Woven Petals and Pollen Gathering. I now have more than half of the blocks are completed.
Solstice Dream blocks 7 and 8

The woven petal block has feathered chain stitch in the leaves which adds an interesting look to the leaves. I sewed blocks one through eight together, these blocks are 18" by 24".
Solstice Dream blocks 1 - 8

Wednesday, September 20, 2017

My three girls

The girls got groomed on Monday which is always a good time for a poodle photo shoot. It was not easy to get 2 poodles posed and I was thinking posing 3 poodles might be impossible. I actually got some great pictures of Katie, Molly and Lillie.
Poodle Oreo cookie
2 black poodles and 1 white poodle equals a poodle Oreo cookie!

The girls were amazingly cooperative of posing for me however Lillie did decide that she needed to climb over Molly.
Not posing

Lillie is now 15 weeks old, she seems to get bigger each day. She weighs 22 pounds and is 15 1/2" at the shoulders. Lillie is a sweet puppy and keeps Katie and Molly on their toes.

Lillie sitting

Sunday, September 17, 2017

Solistice Dream - Thorn Birds and Bees

Trying to stay on track, finished block 6 of Solstice Dream quilt. The block is 12' by 12" finished size.
Thorn Birds and Bees block
This blocks used a variety of threads which always adds interest to the finished block. Rousseau Ric Rac is appliquéd in place then thorns, pistil stitches, were stitched with Painter's Rousseau pearl cotton. Painter's Kadnisky shimmer floss adds a beautiful shimmer to the bird wings and tail. New to me was the Feathered Chain stitch on the 4 larger leaves, adding a small in the chain really added a lovely touch to the leaves.

Turkey work is never my favorite stitch, I did preserve and stitched the 4 bee bodies using Thread Gathers Sheep's Silk. I used a Bunka brush to fluff up the cut stitches. The Bunka brush is a notion for turkey work which makes the fluff so much easier.

450_bunka_brush

Friday, September 15, 2017

Lillie of the Moon Valley

I have not posted for a while, web site needed a major update plus I have a new puppy.
Lillie on rug
Lillie was born on June 4, 2017 and I brought her to my home on Saturday, August 12th when Lillie was almost 10 weeks old.
Chrissy, Lillie's mother, is Molly's litter mate, so Molly and Lillie are aunt and niece. Molly had a tough time excepting Lillie as a new sister but after a 5 day snit, Molly and Lillie became friends. After 5 weeks, Molly and Lillie are now almost inseparable.

Molly and Lillie

Katie, who turned 11 years old on September 2, 2017, leaves most of the puppy sitting duties to Molly but still has accepted Lillie as a permanent member of the family.

Napping girls