Something About Nothing

Flowers are one of my favorite things to photograph. . . . . .so let me know if you get tired of them! I'd love to hear about anything you create using my Photo's of the Week!

Where's Keiko? Keiko loves finding the best places to hide out in the studio. It's always a surprise when I find her. Mister on the other hand is a paws on kinda guy. I leave the studio for two seconds and this is what I come back to! How can I get anything done with those gorgeous eyes begging for attention!

I created a quilt top  and realized that one of my main pieces blended in with the background!  Ahhhhhhh!    So, do I pick apart the quilt and replace the fabric? Appliqué another piece over the top? OR I PAINT over the top using a stencil? Of course I chose paint and stenciling! I masked the area with paper and tape  and then applied some textile paint through a flower stencil.  Better!  I masked another area and repeated the process. And since one layer is never enough I added another layer of white. I like the depth the stenciling created! Hopefully I will be able to show off the entire project soon. I finished the binding, label and hanging sleeve while on a road trip. Wahoo for finished projects! What have you finished lately?

Outdoor entertaining is one of the great joys of spring and summer. Until, of course, the bugs invade. In place of spray and pesticides, try a cluster of mosquito-repelling potted plants. Grouped together near a seating area on your deck or patio, they make a pretty and lush addition to your outdoor landscape while also protecting you and your guests. Check out One Kings Lane's article  Easy Update: Mosquito-Repelling Potagerie  for more information about how a trio of lush potted plants will have you saying good-bye to bug spray.

It's been a week of creative meetings! The Utah Surface Design Group held their annual summer party this week. We were greeted by these lovely paper flowers. . . . . .all in a long row. The fences were also decorated with pieces of surface designed fabric,  some commercial, some home made. When the skies threatened to rain upon us the flowers were brought inside. I love them all together!  We had about 35 people come to the pot luck/show & tell.  The food was generous and delicious! I was enjoying show & tell so much that I neglected to pull out my camera right away so I have fewer photos than I should.  I'm not sure if you will think that is a good thing or a bad thing. This appliqué quilt was her FIRST quilt! She said it took 7 years to finish. It is hand quilted.  Hand painted Lavender lady.   Her face is polymer clay and  she is filled with lavender flowers.   She smelled divine. ...

The other night I attended a night meeting for the women of my church.   The theme was "Create." We have a LOT of creative women in our ward so I knew the meeting would be fabulous.  After dinner we had three demonstrations.  The first was a brief lesson in drawing a flower from a photograph and then filling it in with a little color.  Some of the women haven't drawn since they were in junior high 50 years ago and they were amazed at how much fun they were having.  I didn't bring my camera so my friend Rachel, who taught the drawing class, took this photo of everyone's creations: She laid the drawings out like a beautiful quilt. Great work ladies! The other two demonstrations were on how to frost a cupcake with a decorators tip, and we got to eat our cupcake after, and we were given a decorators tip and frosting bag to take home, and then we were taught how to make flowers from old t-shirts.   The cupcakes were delicious!   We have som...

Every year our friends, Ali and Stephanie , invite us to attend their Bastille Day party:  Food, visiting with friends and a viewing of  The Scarlet Pimpernel . Always fun! Popcorn too of course! The movie started at dusk and was quoted word for word by most of the audience. We've been doing this for a lot of years. Thanks again Ali and Steph. See you next July 14th.

Sometimes you have to look up to get the best view. This is the skeleton of an old teepee in the woods. I couldn't tell which photo I liked better so I thought I would share them both. I'd love to hear from you if you use any of my Photo's of the Week!

After my ice dyeing demo the other night I dyed a few other piece of fabrics and some scarves and then my daughter,  Annie and I went around to the back of Betty Jo's house and played with the ponies.  Annie gave them some carrots and they started following her around like puppy dogs.   They are older mares who were once show ponies.   They are living in Betty Jo's yard to help keep the weeds down on her back lot.  The white horse lives next door but Annie couldn't leave her out!   The pony couldn't believe she would waste carrots on that big horse.  I love her mane!  All seven were real sweethearts. Maybe I should do a pony quilt.