**** I did it!!! *****

I thought it was fitting to post these pictures on this blog that has been quiet for so long.

Providence Bridge Pedal, Portland Oregon.  We rode thirteen miles and crossed six bridges which were closed to traffic for the thousands of riders.

 waving to friends Candy and Kenny who live aboard the Plum Crazy, moored right there.

 

Killing the alien with Beams of Light!

I had my first radiation treatment yesterday. It was scary being bolted to the table and trapped in the mask. It was very tight. I was pinned down for 30 min. Then they beamed in the radiation, loud noises and 100s of bright beams of light. I felt warmth and visualized the light evacuating the alien. KILLING the alien.








I thought a hat was appropriate for the cancer patient.











Here's the big machine and the mask waiting for me.















"The Mask"













Here they are bolting me to the table. There are 11 points where they are aiming the radiation. The machine turns then I see a bright bright light when it shines near my nose and eyes. The are radiating my neck as well and I dont see the bright light those times. It was 100s of loud turns then the LIGHT.









Afterwards.... Waffle Face!!!

Strawberry Wine Adventures

Today I started a batch of strawberry wine.
I used About 10 lbs of Strawberries

















Puree in the blender.


















Add 5lbs of sugar - put in a straining bag inside a fermenting bucket.
Smells like strawberry jam mmmm.













Add the juice of 4 or 5 limes, and a cup of strong tea (4 tea bags)















Add the other ingredients, (except the yeast) and about 2 gallons of boiling water.
Looks nasty now! Those are a million strawberry seeds floating on top.
Cover and stir for 24 hours and add the yeast. Ferment!! Ferment!!
Check out the 2 berries I didn't puree! I switched to the blender as soon as I realized how long it would take to chop them all up.

Padded Wine Bottle or Glass Pipe Bag

This week I worked on a customized bag to carry your delicate glassware items, such as a wine bottle or a glass pipe. It has an ultra padded interior lining that is completely removable and washable (in case you crash your bike and break the bottle , in which case YOU will need washing up as well) . It holds a big bottle of wine or 16" pipe and will stand up on its own.

This is made from a pair of recycled jeans, appliqued with batik. It comes with a cute decorated back pocket and has an adjustable strap made from the waistband.. The lining has a drawstring and button to keep your wine safe and secure. Round padded bottom as well. The lining is 100% cotton double filled with hi loft poly batting.

Fractured Rose

The Art Quilt group at CCQ is doing a challenge with fractured photos.
We selected from a big bunch of photos, and in the end chose 2. 1 is a rose, which happened to be a photo I took at the Portland Rose Garden.











First I printed it the finished size, and drew around the petals to use them as a pattern.




















Then I painted each petal on white muslin using acrylic paints.
I cut them out and assembled them on parchment paper, and fused them together




















I fused the whole shebang to a piece of green fabric 17" square. Then I stitched around the petals with about 5 different pink threads.
We are going to cut them up later today, pass out the pieces and make a fractured flower from the pieces of everybody's work. FUN!!!

Reorganized Workroom

It took weeks. Larry said it had reached 'critical mass'. Every corner was crammed with junk. I relieved the pressure by throwing the bulky junk in the hall (batting scraps, upholstry fabric, quilting samples) Then mom went to the hospital and we stepped over it (and on it) for at least a week. I decided it needed a serious reconstruction so I got drawers, bins, pegboard, tubs for the art supplies, and I actually (gasp) vacuumed. (OK OK- I didnt vacuum, my daughter Josie did - what a babe!) Larry mounted stuff on the wall for me. Ian organized the pegboard! Here's the finished product.


Under the quilting machine table: art bin project boxes, drawers with batik FQs, tubs with scraps, tub-O-art supplies. Upper shelves - more unfinished quilts and dolls

Upper shelves - scraps & FQs (not batik) UFOs orphan blocks & novelty fabrics in the lower drawers. Rulers, thread & tools on the wall. YAY!!! Look! I can work at the desk.

Lil gadget bags

I started making these and they are FUN! Thanks MaryAnn for the idea.

These are made from a 7" X 9"rectangle of fabric (embellished or not),

a 7" zipper and some fusible batting.

Fuse the fabric to a piece of fusible batting. (I love that stuff!) quilt if desired.

Sew the zipper to the short side. stick a little strap at the top of the zipper. (I made them from 2" wide fabric turned twice to make 1/2" straps.

Sew the 2 ends wonky from each other, turn right side out and viola!

2 cousins and a half

Look at these 2 artsy funny boys.

Autumn in My Neighborhood

It stopped raining for a minute, the sun came out and lit up the beautiful leaves! The light was awesome so I snapped a bunch of pictures for posterity........ its raining heavily today so the leaves will be gone soon. Click the slide show on the right to see all the pictures bigger. Its about 1 minute.

Jungle Mania - For Koben

Quilt for Grandson. Sorta Kinda matches his brother's.
Jungle fun! 72 X 72 - good for bunks & camping. Its brighter than this in person and the back is scorching hot yellow flannel!




















Here's big bro with his quilt. They share a room so maybe it will be fun. The back of this is crosscut black corduroy. I got it dirt cheap a few years back in Canada, like $3 a meter and it is 60" wide. Too bad I didn't have an extra suitcase to buy the whole bolt!