Success! In about an hour before dinner, I got 2 little pillowcases made from this cute bee fabric that I found in my stash. Fun!

Traffic on the "L" (the block wall between our house & the neighbors') is getting dense! The lizards are abundant this year & they are just bopping back & forth on the wall like crazy. I always wonder: is it safer to be on top of the wall than on the ground? Are dogs on the ground more dangerous than the neighbor's cats who also use this highway, or the hawks & owls? Just wondering. Lizard push-ups continue to amuse me -- there's one now! This one is at least 8" long, too. Big ones seem much more prevalent this year. Who would've thought I'd be so enchanted with these little buggers? I do remember the house chameleon we had in Hawaii -- it was my hero, eating its weight in cockroaches daily. So maybe my fascination with the lizards is a result of that early appreciation? Dunno, but I'm very glad to see them now. This is the spring of the SoCal BUGS!! Some of them are neat, like the "Mosquito Hawks" (our little neighbors' name for them)& some not so much: hordes of flies in all shapes & sizes. I had to scrub, scrub, scrub the bug juice off my windshield last night after the gas station scrubber did nothing but get the glass wet. Then I scrubbed Alan's, too. It was nice to start out this morning with a sparkling clean view, but the bugs are still getting squished as I rock down the highway. sigh.
Applique class was sparsley attended today, & since I spent a lot of time visiting with Theresa, among others, I didn't get a lot done. I'll finish all the prep work on block #4 this weekend, then I can take it & #3 with me for handwork. I ran into Theresa again in Main St, while on my way to the Olive Oil store. She reminded me that Norma was at the Coop, sewing for Quilts of Valor, so I stopped in there on my way. She has a real sweatshop going on -- there were 4 or 5 people sewing & big stacks of blocks waiting to be turned into tops. Very impressive! Norma's such a honey. She's adopted this path & has turned it into a mission: she wants to provide every single serviceman & woman with a handmade quilt. If anyone can achieve that goal it will be our Norma. Rock on, my friend!
Haven't heard from my honey yet, so I'm going to mosey on to my sewing room & make a travel pillowcase for my little pillow. Maybe it will remind me to take it with me when I get off the plane, & when I leave Patty's. I have to find a pretty & striking print for this. I believe I know just where to look.....

Thursday. So much to do; so little ambition. I want to get all my errand-running out of the way so I can enjoy the weekend with Alan & get myself packed & ready to go. If I don't pay for the expired-tag ticket soon, I can see my car getting impounded -- even though I've gotten the new tag (finally). So there's that: a stop at any cop shop, then to any old courthouse to pay the ticket. Why can't I do this online? Then I have to unload the carload of shredding that's been in my truckster for 3 weeks. Time for it to be gone, I'd say. Have to get gas before I can do anything else; the light came on as I drove home last night. Must scrub the bugs off my windshield, too. Apparently, this is not unique to my car; I saw an article in the PE today to the effect that the rainy spring brought out the normal compliment of bugs. It's just that we're not used to normal these days.
Maybe this afternoon I'll plug in the Concert for George dvd & ponder my collection o' kits. Patty gave me an idea for a retreat project, but it won't take very long to do. So many possibilities. Life is good.

Look out, bunnies!!

You won't get a picture with this post. I used to laugh at my husband when he'd say, as he let the dogs out in the morning, "Run, bunnies!" Not anymore. Somehow, a young rabbit managed to still be near the patio this morning after the dogs had run past & started the day with a serious barkfest with the neighboring dogs. I was heading over to the hose to blast them all when I saw the bunny -- running right toward the dogs. It was awful -- there are gaps in the fence in the other corner, & at the gate, but this stupid bunny ran right into the midst of the dogs & tried to get out where there was no gap. I did my best to spray the dogs away from it, but the bunny died. Finally, I had to go find a glove & a bucket & retrieve that poor little body, dumping it in the trash bin. So sad. Mama & Buffy (aka "the murderers") accompanied me to the funeral, but I don't think they were remorseful at all. No, pretty sure there was no regret there. I really don't want Buffy to become any more of a hunter than she already is. She terrifies Blossom at nearly every opportunity as it is, & I'd really like to discourage that behavior if at all possible.
There's a reason they're called dumb bunnies.

No buddy Linda on Tuesday; once again, her family pre-empted her time for fun. sigh.

Mostly I played with my fabric & spent some time getting to know the Easy Angle CD features. Lots of great blocks & components on that one. I'm taking that with me on the retreat next week.

Speaking of the retreat, I need to decide what to take with me to work on. Will it be a BOM? A simple project, or a more complicated one? Should I not take anything at all & plan to find a project while shopping -- maybe at Calico in Racine? Ah, this is the kind of dilemma I like!

I've decided to join the IL guild again this year, even if I don't get to do the retreat. I like hearing about their activities & programs, which are so different from my local guild's. We've been debating about attending the guild meeting that will take place on our first evening together. I'm beginning to think we should -- it doesn't last long, it will be fun, & it's at the Schaumburg Library, right across the parking lot from the Oberweis Dairy Store! Ah, chocolate-marshmallow, here I come! Yeah, that sounds like a good idea.

I so enjoy this retreat & the time beforehand that Patty & I spend together. It's such a time of renewal for me, even though there's so much activity. I'm completely relaxed at Patty's, & we have such a peaceful friendship, that I come away feeling refreshed & inspired. So nice. I also get to see at least 2 of my children -- maybe all 3 this time -- & that's so satisfying. I miss them all mightily. Hearing their voices on the phone is good, but seeing their faces, & getting those fabulous hugs -- these are the things that satisfy my soul. Spending Mothers Day with them is the icing on the retreat cake.



OK! Today I'll spend some time with kits & decide what, if anything, I will work on for the retreat. If I do take something, I want it ready to sew, so the cutting will need to be done this week. LOVE THIS!!

I surrendered to Pillars of the Earth & will return it to John. I just couldn't get into the story, even after 350 pages. I visited the bookshelves & found the 1st 2 of a series & decided to give the first a try. Read 50 pages the first night. Yippee! I like a book that grabs my interest right off the bat. This series is about the partnership of a pair of detectives who meet during the London Blitz. Their partnership lasts 60 years; the series begins with the death of one of them, then flashes back & forth from 1940 to the present. Good stuff. I'll take the second book with me, along with a couple of other titles, just in case. Funny how I can't be without a book, no matter the circumstances.

Monday, Monday...... I actually love Mondays these days. Who'da thunk it? Getting to my class & seeing what my students have accomplished, & what they want to do next is great incentive to get my sleepy, lazy butt out of bed & moving forward. This week's class was terrific, as I've now come to expect. Ramona, that battery-butt girl, has put her rail fence top together & only has to add the outer borders to finish it. It is stunning! I'll take the camera to class next week so I can get a picture of it. Such beautiful fabrics & a great arrangement that makes the rails flow. Diane finished her 9-Patch variation top!!! We did a happy dance & she chose her back & quilt pattern for the quilter. No Linda today -- we missed her.
Diane's going to finish a top she started in my pal Theresa's Rotating 9-Patch class, so I thought I'd do one along with her. I spent an hour or so yesterday trying to decide which charm squares I'd use for mine -- I can't make up my mind!

My buddy Linda is coming over to sew this morning. Good times. You'd think I do nothing that isn't related to quilting.....you might be right!

Sunday was a bust. I started out well, putting things away in my sewing room & getting fired up for the Avo Festival, but after breakfast I started feeling queer. Thought I was going to throw up, so I headed back to bed where Alan was watching the Cubs game. I fell asleep when the score was 13-3 Cubs & woke up about 5:30. Day shot! Ah, well, tomorrow is another day & I'm ready to do the hand stitching on my applique block.

Laundry done! Watching several episodes of "Saving Grace" & loving it, while I work on the March applique block. Progress is a good thing.

DH is off to the races for the day, so I'm on my own. Color me zippy & ecstatic. Stupid, I know, since he goes to work every day during the week -- somehow being alone on a Saturday still makes me feel like it's all-day recess. Go figure. So I'll do laundry & get something finished for the Huck Finn show. Really. Today's the day. More as we progress through the day......

Have to share this with you -- be sure to see the full post at the Breakdown in the Fastlane blog (at left), but here's a bit to tantalize you:

'A brilliant chap, who had recently moved to Wilkes Land to pursue his dream of ice fishing, came up with the winning entry. He devised a system of unipolar and bipolar disorders. Unipolar was to be the term to describe what was formerly known as Depressed as Hell. And Bipolar was to be the new term for Manic Depressive. As we patients, ah, forgive me, old habits die hard . . . as we Individuals know, no one wants to hang out with someone who is Depressed as Hell — but Unipolar sounds like a skill (”my friend is so accomplished — she is even Unipolar”) and everyone likes a buddy with prowess. Unipolar pales, however, in comparison with Bipolar — “Yeah, well my friend is Bipolar! So there!”'

I am a totally Unipolar fan of Ms. Breakdown!

Creativity has taken a hit this week. I've been trying to get something finished, but haven't succeeded so far. Maybe tomorrow......

I did have a creative chat with 2 friends today: Verna via long distance phone from IN; & Ellen right here in my sewing room. How nice to be able to visit with two quilty friends in one day.

Did you hear about the 5.3 earthquake in Southern IL? Verna (in Northern IN) was awakened by it! I'm cracking up. Not once in the 50+ years I lived in the Midwest did I ever experience an earthquake; now that I live in SoCal, the Midwest gets a whopper! Go figure.

Plans for the 8th (?) annual Girlfriends quilting retreat are proceeding nicely. One of our very favorite quilt shops is going out of business, as the 3 darling owners have decided to join their husbands in retirement. sigh. Calico, Colors & Canvas, in Racine, WI, http://www.calicocanvasandcolors.com/index.htm has begun a going-out-of-business sale. I'm just crushed. I have loved this store and its owners since I first made their acquaintance about 15 years ago. So we will make one last pilgrimage as a group when we get together in 2 weeks & head up to Racine for a final visit & shopping spree. I'll have to redeem my 2 full punch cards. big, big sigh.

I've Been Tagged!

I've been tagged by Renee to give you 7 Random or Weird facts about me

Here are the RULES:
1. Once you are tagged, link back to the person who tagged you
2. Post the RULES on your blog
3. Post 7 weird or random facts about yourself on your blog
4. Tag 7 people and link to them.
5. Comment on their blog to let them know they have been tagged

Here are 7 Weird or Random Facts About Me:

1. I'm a Capricorn
2. I was born & raised in IL, but now live in SoCal.
3. I'm 25% Irish, with cousins living just outside Belfast.
4. My mom is a descendant of Daniel D. Tompkins, Vice President of the U.S. under Monroe, while my dad is a relative of Richard M. Nixon.
5. I am a survivor of employment at Mt. Prospect (IL) Public Library.
6. I have no middle name, & my name is not short for anything else.
7. I can belch on demand.

While I'm willing to play this game, I'm only willing to go so far. This is very time-consuming, & like Renee, I don't know enough other bloggers well enough to tag them. So please enjoy the factoids I've presented here; it goes no further with me.

Still enjoying those fabulous strawberries, although there's only about a pint & a half left. We are NOT letting these babies rot, that's for sure.
Last night's Sisters of the Cloth was a hoot: Jane brought cupcakes with Superman rings on them for each of us. We all put them on & every now & them someone would do a fist-pump & grunt -- it was awesome! There's nothing like a bunch of grown-up women being silly. Anyone walking in would've thought it was the loony bin, & they wouldn't have been far off. It's probably good there are too many of us to meet in each others' homes, since we are so noisy & obnoxious. But we are productive. Lots & lots of sewing got done last night. I made more X's for my Garden Maze quilt. I'm going to make another template for trimming them, though. I don't think the way I've been doing it is very accurate, & I want them to look good. I'll trace around the template, then use a ruler & rotary cutter to square them up. I really do like this pattern a lot.
The local house finches are a busy lot these days. The girls are gathering up all the ripening millet heads for their nests, & the boys are zipping around supervising & trying to get a little at the same time. So cute & funny. The hawk family does seem to have returned to their next & are sitting on eggs, we think. I sure hope so! We really felt their absence last year.

Rather than aggravate the repetetive motion injury damage I did to my shoulder, with all the tiny square trimming I did on Sunday & again yesterday, I decided to get some of the magazine quilt patterns into page protectors. Eventually I'll get them sorted into binders so they'll all be easier to locate when I want a new project. Looking at the patterns as I put them into the page protectors was really satisfying -- almost like going shopping, if you can believe that. So many pretty quilts; so many fun projects ahead! Nice.
As I headed down to Faith's for a haircut this morning, the Plowboys sign jumped out at me: Asparagus 99 cents! Woo hoo! After a quick stop at Ralph's (for which we'll now get 10 cents/gallon off on the next fill-up!), I headed for Plowboys & got some oranges & lemons to go with my asparagus. This is such a season of promise, & the strawberries & asparagus are just the beginning of the wonderful warm-weather bounty of SoCal. It just makes me happy thinking about it!

My students rock! All 3 had accomplishments to show off today: Linda created the back for her snowball quilt & began cutting for her next project, Diane had put together her wonky 9-patches & started on her borders, & Ramona -- well! She had cut & pieced all her rail fence blocks & had designed a layout she's pleased with. She got about 1/3 of her rows put together before it was time to break up. Well done, ladies!
Next week, Linda says she'll be ready to start sewing, Diane will be ready to choose her back & the fabric for her next quilt, & Ramona will be adding borders to her rail fence. They're just zooming along.
I got a few more tiny hst's trimmed while I watched the girls sew. Not a big accomplishment for me, but I wasn't there for me, so I don't feel too badly.

The really big news is that Sheryl gave me several wonderful small quilts for the Huck Finn Jubilee -- wheeeeee! We're on our way! Thanks so much, Sheryl. These will fly out of our booth, I know.
On the way home, I followed directions from Stacy & Nicolette & found the strawberry stand they had both raved about. The strawberries are grown & harvested from the field that surrounds the stand -- talk about shopping locally! They didn't have any of the oranges the girls had told me about, so I'll have to go back again. Can't wait to sample the berries -- they are so beautiful & smell divine. Gotta love SoCal.

For today's creativity, I spent a couple of hours (at least)trimming & squaring up the 1.75" 1/2 square triangles for the Little Women double X. I'm nearly finished & have also trimmed the extras for the "Leftovers" quilt for next month. That's it. It did seem very tedious, but I watched several recorded shows: Color Splash, Design on a Dime, & Sell This House. It did help with the time.
It was HOT today: 90, & 81 on the porch. It's supposed to cool off some during the week. I sure hope so, since there's another Quilt Show committee sew in on Thursday. I was OK with just a small fan blowing on me, but a room full of women would get awfully hot at that temp. Keep your fingers crossed!

30#

That's THIRTY POUNDS. I've dropped 30# in the last 6 1/2 months, & I won't be looking for them anytime soon. I still have that much more to go, but progress breeds progress, so I'm very encouraged. Cholesterol is down, blood pressure is down, I'm feeling more energetic -- I can do this.

Busy, busy, busy. Friday's Stashbusters was all about Saturday's Little Women: I spent hours cutting all the little pieces for the Double X blocks, only to find out I could've done fewer than 1/2 & had enough for the sample size. ugh. Well, I'll get a couple of little quilts out of this one. It turned out to be pretty tedious to piece, too. It winds up being about 4.25". oof. I like my color choices. Maybe I'll use one or two of each combination in a quilt & be done with it. That should work.


The Garden Maze blocks continue to fascinate me. I did a little more cutting & piecing on that Friday, too. When I get more blocks made, I'll put them on the design wall & post here, but for now you can see what one block looks like.


While I was taking pictures, my DH poked his head above the design wall, so. . . .

The "Red Square" project was itching to progress, so I pulled it out & got it sandwiched & ready to quilt. I'm not ready to do that yet, but at least it's ready to go now.

Thursday: Progress!

Today, I got an entire block of the Garden Maze put together. Then I made another half without paper piecing to see if it was better or worse. The regular piecing is faster, but -- surprise! -- not as precise. I'm probably going to go with faster, though, since time really does matter on this one. I'll need to finish the top & get it to Patty pdq so it can go to Huck Finn in June. So much to do. . . . so little time.

Hump Day

I actually spent time sewing today. Yes, I did. First, I spent a lot of time sitting here, in front of the computer, but some of that time I was looking at quilt patterns. I found one on About.com for a nice 2 color quilt that looked interesting. After printing the instructions & the paper piecing pattern for part of it, I headed out to the porch, where I rediscovered last year's Thimbleberries Club fabric. Since it was totally untouched (never did like those crazy-big blocks!) I made the decision to sort & use it elsewhere. Found a couple of good candidates & started sewing. Wonderful! I didn't get very far, but now I know what size to cut strips for the paper piecing, & how those parts of the block will look. I'm encouraged. Tomorrow, after the dentist, I'll need to try to focus on blocks for Saturday's Little Women. I pulled out some black prints & some greens, cheddars & reds from the reproduction bin, so I've made a start, at least. Can't remember now if I'm actually supposed to build blocks ahead of time or only do the cutting. I think just the cutting -- for something like 40 blocks. hmmm. I wonder if I can fake it?

Old friend Bob had his annual review today with the sociopath. Last year, he wore his best suit & wrote several pages of replies to the inane questions she had added to his review. This time, he wore jeans & a 2-day growth of beard, & brought a single page in response to her (still inane) questions. He reports that there was no difference with the change in attire or attitude. sigh. I just hope he survives the next 4 years with his sanity intact. And that great sense of humor, God bless him. His reports of goings-on at my former place of employment are a great source of amusement for me, as well as an affirmation that it wasn't all in my imagination. (CZ: say nothing!) I do worry about the boy as he has such a sunny outlook about most things, but it's a dark, dark place to work. Well, he did know what he was getting into when he took that position. I don't doubt he'll beat my tenure & come out not only with a pension but having had the last laugh. And he'll keep me laughing until then.

Quilters U

Guild tonight was so much fun! We had quite a number of demonstrations going on all at once, with Linda acting as Ringmaster. I've always loved Quilters U nights, as we get to sample bite-sizes of several different techniques, which just might encourage us to take a class or learn more about something we haven't yet tried. I didn't get to sample tonight, since I was one of the demo-ers this time. I did hand quilting, something at which I'm no expert, but I do all right. There was a lot of interest & I wound up exhausted but happy.

My Secret Pal did it again: her card said, "Cheddar?" and in the bag were several excellent fat quarters in my new favorite color--cheddar, as well as. . . . a brick of cheddar cheese! Too funny, this one. Alan knows who she is, but I don't want to know -- it's too much fun to spoil the suspense now. I've been so lucky in my Pals thus far. So nice.

As for creativity today, I'll have to count my performance tonight at guild as the creative effort-o-the-day. Tomorrow I plan to sew & do laundry all day in my jammies. I might even cook dinner. Or not. We'll see. For now, it's off to slumberland for me. Ta.

Beginners class

My two beginning quilting students have finished their first tops! It's so exciting to see how thrilled they are, & how eager they are to move on to the next project. Each of them has decided to make bigger quilts this time. Ramona will be making a 3-colorway rail fence lap quilt, while Linda has decided to do the 9-patch variation in a queen size. Diane couldn't make it today -- she's sick with pneumonia again -- but when she comes back, all three of them will be working on a different quilt. That should be fun! Linda also finished her snowball top today, so she'll have two coming back from the quilter soon. Nice.

I have to get moving on this month's Little Women -- I haven't cut a single one yet, & class is Saturday. I also haven't done a bom for guild, which is tomorrow. Excuse me. I have to go sew!

Monday

Saturday's Quilt Show committee sew-in was a lot of fun. Six of us spent several hours together, sewing & laughing & eating. Now what could be better than that? Well, I would've preferred a little more warmth from the sun, & a little less noise from the dogs, but otherwise, it was a great day. At one point, the dogs did settle down, but as I was taking some of the food back to the kitchen, I saw that had been occupying them: they had removed a little quilt I'd been working on from its hoop & shredded one end. They managed this without damaging the hoop, mind you. Notice in the last picture that they very kindly left the needle I was using in the quilt, & chewed on the other end! I've decided I must just smell yummy to these guys, since they never attack my husband's things -- only mine. Not making me feel special, though. I'll be taking this to guild tomorrow as an example of hand quilting for my demonstration. This will be the cautionary tale about leaving one's handwork lying around. sigh.

Progress!

Finally, I have made some progress. Tonight's class at TQC was both lots of fun & very productive. I got my background gridded & all of the squares placed & glued on. Now I need to sandwich the front with the batting & backing, then quilt through all the layers & over each square. Maybe I'll do that tomorrow at the sew-in. For now, that clean bed is calling to me. Hear it? Oh, come on. Try. There it is. And I'm answering, "here I come!!"

The El

I'm so enjoying watching the busy return of the lizards. They zoom across the elevated highway (block wall) across the patio from my window, & occasionally cross the end wall of the house next door. Every now & then, they'll do the "lizard push-ups" which never fail to crack me up. It seems like this year's group is extra large, while last year's were pretty small. I'm not seeing a lot of dark ones, but more medium-hued than light. I find them fascinating. Once, while I was sitting here in front of the computer, a lizard stepped onto the screen on the window right in front of me, then paused so I could get a good long look at his wonderful little feet. They are so cool. I do wish Mama & Buffy weren't so determined to hunt them down & maim them. Pretty disgusting to find a legless lizard, belly-up just outside the door in the morning. yech.

Creativity takes a hit

I was a complete slug today. After getting up early to work on someone else's quilty problem, it went downhill from there. I spent all morning chatting back & forth with Patty & Nanci, then on my way to get dressed, fell asleep with a cat on my chest. At 4:00 I managed to get upright again & head out to the porch to get things organized for the sew-in on Saturday. Fortunately, it didn't take much. I'll vacuum either tomorrow or on Saturday morning. Otherwise, it's ready to go. The rest of the house will take up the day tomorrow. sigh. It's always something.
I'm assigned a salad for tomorrow night's potluck/quilt class at TQC, so I'll have to get to the store sometime, too. Guess that means I'll actually have to get dressed, huh? Wish the dogs would quit shedding for a couple of days -- that would help a lot.
I did manage to get the 4th border of a little Jacob's ladder marked, so I can get that hand quilted & bound before guild next week. I'll need samples for my hand quilting demo. So that's my creativity for the day. Not very creative, but it's what I have. Tomorrow is another day, & I'll have me a very creative evening!

Creating a plan

So this morning, I'm trying to figure out yardage for a queen size quilt so that a student can make a bigger quilt than the 30" square one we started with. This is her FIRST quilt, mind you! I'm using my QuiltCalc & had to go online to find the right size first. Now I'll get cracking on the details. Of course, my student is going shopping in about an hour, so I guess I need to go do that, huh?

American Idol

Yes, I admit it: I'm an AI fangirl. It's the reality show I love to hate, right along with Dancing with the Stars. So tonight Ramiele was bounced. The tension! The emotion! The death-grip farewell hugs!!! And then they made her sing. Phooey! They need to let these people go with a little bit of dignity, don't you think? Anyhow, I'm glad Brooke & Jason stayed put, at least for another week. You need to know that I expect David Cook & Carly to be the final two. I'm putting myself out there right now. David A is just too darned young to win; Jason is too one-dimensional, although he is darling & pleasant to listen to; Michael's voice gives me the willies; Syesha just wants to BE Whitney; Brooke. . . I don't hate her, but I just think Carly has a much better voice. And David Cook? So versatile, so talented. He has grown on me right from the audition, when I thought: eww. That hair. But his talent comes through every single week.
Comments? Discussion? Bring it!

Creative Every Day: Creative Every Day 2008

Creative Every Day: Creative Every Day 2008
For some reason there's no active link on the icon for this, so I'm adding the link here. I do like the idea of being consciously creative on a daily basis.

Daily creativity

Today, I tried some creative accounting. That didn't go too well! I did finish hand quilting the borders on a birthday gift for my Old Same (see "Snow Flower & the Secret Fan" for that particular reference). I still need to add something to the cornerstones, but then I'll either bind or frame it. I do love it. Once the gift is given, I can reveal the picture of the finished project, so be patient.
On another note, we canceled our Sprint PCS account in February, replacing it with a Verizon phone for me, as Alan got one from work & we get a nice discount for mine, as well. So I keep getting these bills from Sprint for $2.88. After paying it last month, thinking it was the balance due on the canceled account, I saw there was another one this month. After a little investigation, it turns out that the bowling game I downloaded to my cell phone several years ago has been costing me $2.88 a month -- & will continue to do so until I figure out how to cancel it, now that I no longer have a Sprint phone number access to that account on the Sprint website. I talked to a guy at the Sprint store tonight & he told me "good luck!" Oh, thanks, buddy. That was a big help. Yikes! So now I have to figure out how to identify the person/place or website that will allow me to cancel this insidious little bill. I've canceled the payment I'd scheduled for this month, so maybe that will get some kind of response, hopefully from someone other than the decidedly unhelpful Sprint. Any suggestions? hmph.

Another site

Here's another site that sells the fabric. Most of the links to further info don't work, though. Frustrating! http://shweshwe.net/index.asp

Shweshwe fabric

I came across a reference to something I'd never heard of this morning: Shweshwe -- which looks an awful lot like the South African indigos I've been buying for last few years from a vendor at Road2CA. Anybody know whether they're one & the same? The blogger said she'd ordered & received some from the manufacturer. hmm. Not that I need more, mind you, but I've never heard this name before & it looks exactly like the indigos I have. Just curious, you know? I tried to link to the blog I saw this on, but since it was embedded in an APQ newsletter, there was no direct link to the blog. Sorry. Here's the DaGama website for shweshwe: www.dagama.co.za/

Great find!

So while browsing quilty-type sites, as I'm wont to do, I found this amazing new toy that you're all going to want to have for your very own. It's a stupendous innovation, something we all need & just didn't know it. Check out this link to see for yourself: http://www.quilterswarehouse.com/itemdesc.asp?ic=AFE2008

Let me know if you think it's as great a find as I do!