Quilting Spaces

I have not been idle in the sewing departments.... Just not able to show too much of what I was working on. But I can share now.

In April a friend dropped in and brought along a Charity Quilt top I offered to quilt. I did and it is done!!! I should have rotated the picture.... This quilt is Kaffe Fasset fabrics and a blue batik. It is really quite colorful and bright. And it goes along with the Challenge (below)... as it is also a 'String Pieced Quilt'!

One of the the guilds I belong to issued a challenge in February. "Strings" and I immediately thought of a Zebra. The rules were 50% of the quilt had to be strings, the strings had to be less than 2.5 inches in width, and it did not have to be quilted. Due in June.

I had so much fun making the Zebra that I had to do another one. The Giraffe.

I hope to do a few more of these.... because they were fun and as I was doing them they made me remember some of the things from daily living in South Africa that I had not thought about in a long while. I created a label on the reverse of the zebra that talks about many of the things I remembered about wildlife in South Africa. The Giraffe label will talk about shopping in South Africa.

Still More Later!!!  Beth

Heat, UFOs & Strips

Lately I haven’t been in the sewing space very much! In July it was just too blasted hot up there. July was hot and then a heat wave and then just plain hot again.

We have two air conditioning units for this house. The one for upstairs, bedroom level and the sewing space, had been having difficulty before the month long heat set in. We had the A/C repair folks out 6 times before it really got hot, and when it would run nearly all day and still not be able to bring the temps down very much, I just turned the a/c off up there and didn’t spend any time in the upper levels. We have a basement room, that never warms up, so that became the bedroom. We moved a spare bed down there, where it will stay. Is it perfect? no, but it is much better than trying to sleep in a room that just won’t cool!

Temperatures are finally better, but I still haven’t spent much time actually sewing.

Ah, but I do have a project in the works! As I mentioned somewhere before, I am trying to deplete the stack of Un-Finished Projects, that have accumulated for various reasons. So far, I am turning one UFO, into two and have started another….  My idea for completing part 2 of the UFO will require a variety of brightly colored fabrics…. and to not have to buy each fabric… I decided to organize a strip swap! The little time I’ve been in the sewing space, has been dedicated to finding suitable fabrics for strips. The swap is nearly complete, but let me just say…. YUM! I hope to begin playing with those beautiful strips later this week. No pictures yet…. of the project, but they will be coming soon! I have enjoyed this swap so much, I might just have to do another!!!

Wednesday, was a sew-in at the local guild that I joined. It is in lieu of a regular meeting…  I have a baby quilt due sometime in September, so I thought I would work on that. Actually it is the beginning of every baby quilt I make in the future. I have decided to make a variety of 9 patch blocks, and the leftovers will be the beginning of the next baby quilt… Since babies need stimulation, and generally only see black and white early on, I am going to supply the black and white for the babies.

PICTURES!

I am still revisiting the pictures from our visits to Kruger National Park in South Africa. One of the most amazing adventures I have ever had. Above is the Lioness portrait. These ladies, along with some other adult females, young adults and adolescent cubs were just finishing up a breakfast of zebra when we found them. They are looking at lunch, a small herd of Wildebeest (Gnu) in the distance. Lions never pass up the chance for a meal… they did give a half hearted chase of the Wildebeests…. but they were full and it was too much work, so they faded off into the long grasses, for nap I’m sure!

and

Three of the young adults… do you see the onlooker hoping for a scrap? The grass is over 2 feet tall where it hasn’t been crushed. Oh the onlooker is a vulture. There were also quite a few of those hanging about…. waiting for the leftovers. They are not as pretty as the lions… trust me!

More Later- Beth

Projects….

In the last post I showed a collage of projects. I have decided to work on UFO’s for the most part this year.  None of them are large… well the one top is… but it is part of a UFO that has been reworked… 

It was supposed to be a combo of a red and white checker board and some appliqued chickens in bright colors (similar to the chickens below)…. on the bottom half diagonally. Didn't like it when I got it sewn. Then I put it away. When I looked at it again, I decided to take the chickens off, and had enough of the red and white 25 patch squares and the white for the plain squares to make a decent size center. I knew that I didn't want more red…. for the border, but something a bit more fun than a simple print. I found this print when I wasn't even looking for it!!! I have the backing and it is just waiting for its opportunity to be sandwiched and quilted.

Another finish was the ‘Side of a Barn’ that I started in South Africa at the IQCA convention/show that I attended in July of 2012, just before packing out to come home. The class was a Susan Brubaker Knapp class (see Blue Moon River for more information). I didn't take much in the way of notes, thinking the handouts would have enough information…. the don’t, -so to finish it I had to fake it. I also couldn't find the thread that I had started using for the shading on the barn… and I got to the point I just wanted it done. I do like my rock wall though… lots and lots of threads and stitches … to achieve the rocks!!! I think I would have like a class more on the developing a photograph for fabric interpretation rather than using someone else's photograph.

I did start one new project, and like the rock wall lots of thread and stitches… I wanted to do a monogram, well just an initial from an old Alphabet Embroidery clip I have been seeing on the Internet. So I planned it out…. first I enlarged it, then traced it on to the back of a stabilizer. Since I was using a black fabric, I couldn't just trace it to the front…. I didn't want any chalk on the front to dull the black. So I stitched the design from the back through the stabilizer and the front, using a fine thread ( Sew Fine)  in a red. Then I backed it with wool batting and backing. In hindsight I think I would have backed with just the batting for the thread sketching/painting. To put the color on the front I did free motion thread work using a Superior Rainbow- red, purple, orange and gold. I added a bit of a red sparkly thread here and there for some punch, although it doesn't photograph at all! For the back ground I did a simple stipple using a #50 black cotton thread. Originally I was going to do a piped binding, but couldn't find the right color of red or orange…. so I opted for beads. Overall size is about 18 x 30 inches.

The Hexies, were from a care package I received in South Africa. 1 1/4 inch hexagons cut from Japanese fabrics. I had 3 packages of the fabric…. so I picked up some precut paper pieces and did a little English Paper Piecing for a hand project. I have all the hexies sewn together (I just didn't take a picture)…. and I am trying to decide if I want to use the leftover parts to fill in the sides or not. It really isn’t large enough to do anything with…. but I will applique it to a background and maybe turn it into a table topper. I recently saw a different layout, so I may take this apart and rework the flowers…





And lastly another reworked UFO. It was a top…(small) but I just didn't like it. So I took it apart and let the chickens hang out on the wall…. for what seems like a really long time, about 4 months…. and then… I discovered a friend in Chicagoland is having a really rough time… and when I got home I saw the chickens and how bright and fun they looked. They are made from hand dyed fabrics (most are from my friend Karen. see her blog here) and are beaded. So I finished them individually with some really bright and cheerful prints, and proceeded to make several little quiltlets… suitable for a wall or other small space… to bring a smile to someone I know- that really needs a lift. I think I have homes for 3 more, (2 well wishing and 1 birthday), which will leave one- leftover- but if I know life… it will have a home soon.

More Later-

Beth

On the Wall

Before I left South Africa I received my ‘birthday blocks’ from the Kwetterkwilters. I posted about it here.  I mentioned that I was most likely going to frame and hang one of the blocks in my new sewing space. Marina, made a block that was so moving, bright and beautiful, that I thought it deserved a frame of its own.  

  

Its been up for a month or so. Things have changed a bit…. while I was out of the country. You used to be able to have a mat for a frame cut at the big box craft stores, but no longer. Now they take the measurements and send it out…. and then charge an arm and a leg to stick it in the frame… It took 2 weeks to get the mat back. I opted to have the mat cut, but I did the rest. Easy enough. I stitched the block to a mounting board and then put it in the frame behind the cut mat. It looks great.

Here it is hanging on the wall with a couple of other things…. You can just see a couple of postcards in the upper right corner.

I am still waiting to finish the space. We got the ledge out. It was really pretty simple. I still need to paint the wall and have the bare floor taken care of. Hopefully by this weekend… so I can tackle making curtains for the sliding glass door. I have tried 3 different ‘ready made’ solutions and all of them were hideous! So I have resigned myself to making a curtain to hang. The door is over size… so off the shelf is not working!

Empty Space-s

To borrow a title from another blogger (thanks Wolfie). I have been busy lately segregating, sorting, and simplifying our stuff. Which has resulted in this.

The study being packed

and this

The kitchen being packed

and this.

This the sewing room and most of the guest room.

On Tuesday 3 gentlemen, Louis, Franco and Aaron, arrived to start the packing process. They got here around 9 and by 4 just about everything was boxed that would be going by Sea Freight.

Today, the same 3 arrived at about 8:30, I served them tea and then they got busy and completed the boxing by 10. Then the big truck came, with an additional 4 men. Stanford, Paul, Bob and Charles. Again I served tea and the business of loading the truck got started.

We arrived with 4 containers and we will be leaving with 4 containers.

By noon, the truck was loaded, the boxes were closed and labeled and tied down. I made them lunch… and that was it. 

We are Packed Out!

Sewing room on the left and guest bedroom on the right

The crew!

The only things we have left are the Air Freight and the luggage items. Simple living for the next 3 weeks and then the fun begins! House hunting, car shopping and worrying about the dogs and their adventure which is separate from ours. They will be leaving a day or so after us, stopping over in Amsterdam… for a ‘rest stop’ of about 8 hours and then continuing on to Washington DC, where they will be met by an expediter and whisked away to a kennel for a night and a bath.

More Later-  Beth

Weather

We are having a true taste of weather!!! Here, where we are on the verge of the Southern Hemisphere spring and we have winter. REAL winter. Cold -bone chilling cold. Winds with a bit of ice in them… that make the cold air even colder and cuts right through to your bones. And snow! Yep, snow flurries.

There are places in South Africa that see some snow in the winter, every winter. But for Johannesburg and Pretoria to see snow flakes, that is a bit more unusual. Sort of like snow in San Diego California.

Taken with my phone… on my way home….

On Tuesday, when I got home… I let the dogs out into the yard. Axel, who has of course seen snow was very excited… he ran and rolled and played. Linzi, didn’t even notice…. Pretoria did not have any accumulation and the little that accumulated near Johannesburg, melted shortly after the sun appeared.

It is cold here! Not as cold as dead of winter in the northern plains of the USA. But here where the temperatures are milder, where homes are brick without insulation, windows are single glazed and weather stripping is non existent… central heat is not available and add to that high energy costs (and an overloaded energy grid)… well it’s cold inside and out! Burr.

More Later-

Beth

 

A Question Posed

This next week will be very busy, so I am going to try and see if I can setup a post…. to post while I am at IQCAfrica.

When I told my sister that I was moving back to the USA, she asked me what I would miss about living in South Africa. I gave her a couple of things…. but I can think of several more.

1. The FRIENDS I have made. Those that sew and those that don’t.
2. The WEATHER. It’s hard to leave a place that is warm for most of the year, and the few cold days are just that, cold, but NOT freezing.
3. The VEGITATION. So many different kinds and something is in bloom all year long.
4. The WILDLIFE. Birds and animals, just like the flowers, there are so many different kinds… and they are very entertaining.
5. The opportunity to EXPLORE. New cities, places, people and customs.
6. The VETERINARIANS. They practice old fashioned medicine, and know what they are doing. Axel has done very well here, and we are not looking forward to the difficulties in the USA, again.
7. THUNDER STORMS. Not that we don’t have them in the USA, but the intensity is amazing.

Of course there is the flip side, things I am looking forward to having again.

1. FOODS. I have missed Cranberry Juice, cottage cheese, apple sauce and cheeses.  They have these here, but they are just not the same!!!
2. QUILT STORES. Not just the quilt shops, but the choice. We don’t know how lucky we are in the USA. The cost of the goods is much less and the choices are much larger!
3. DRIVING. On the correct side of the car and road, again.

As you can see the list of things I will miss is considerably longer that the things I am looking forward…. to.

As usual, I’ll have More Later- Beth

Gifting

Recently my friend Susara, was telling me about a group of ladies that she is working with at a church. These ladies have been making clothing and were finally tired of the same thing -so Susara was asked to teach them some quilting. She was so frustrated with the things she had to work with or I should say the things she didn’t have.

There are 2 groups of ladies at the church, those that make clothing and those that are learning patchwork. Notice the sewing machine in the picture -it is a hand crank sewing machine. Can you imagine sewing with only one hand… while the other turns the the flywheel, that makes the needle go up and down?

The fabrics they started with were more like decorator fabrics, the cutting implements dull -the rotary cutter and mat are Susara's personal items. Add to that only one iron and most of the ladies had difficulty threading the needles on the sewing machines due to eyesight.

So I went home and sorted through my fabrics. I removed most of the ones I just didn’t like, ones I didn’t use for the original project and therefore wouldn’t use in the foreseeable future…. etc. I pulled out about 40 pounds… maybe more I really didn’t weigh it.  Most were fat quarters, but there were several pieces of 1-3 yards. The next week I went back through my stuff …. looking a bit deeper. I found my cheater glasses (4 pair), lots of waxed hand quilting thread, some batting, patterns and the iron I dropped (still heats/no steam).

In the meantime I was emailing with Kelly at “I Have a Notion”, and mentioned my donation. Kelly insisted on helping and asked several of her friends if they had any items for the box. Kelly notified me that a box was on it’s way. Next hurdle was finding a date that I could get to the group to deliver the box. The day was yesterday.

Susara started to teach them making string quilts on a foundation. None of the ladies have a machine at home, so Susara has come up with ‘homework’, a hand piecing project. Here one lady is sharing her hexagons. Can we just say WOW! I recognize some of the fabrics in these too from my stash donation several weeks ago!  I have to say very impressive.

These are some of the string blocks.  And one of the first tops made with the string blocks. The border is also one of the larger pieces from my stash. Susara is having them all make string blocks so that they can all have a string blanket. These will be hand quilted, without a batting since they were done on a foundation.

I then interrupted to give them the box from the Kelly and Friends. This a picture of the ladies giving the goodies a quick look see. Margaret appraised the contents. Asked if it was for the ladies to share, and I said yes. She and one of the other ladies took the box to the corner…. and began to distribute. There are 7 ladies currently in the group, and they made 7 different piles…. and

put a piece of fabric in each pile until it was all distributed. One member, Rebecca was not there, but she will get hers next week! I must say that I got several very tight warm overjoyed hugs from these ladies. They could not believe their good fortune!!! These women are the working poor. They all have jobs, but their existence is hand to mouth and rarely have any $ left over at the end of the week. While this box doesn’t seem like much, it is truly a welcomed gift.

While the box was sorted, Susara showed the ladies how to layer a top and a backing, for sandwiching. Next it was basted. Susara asked if I would show them how to hand quilt. I didn’t have a thimble with me, but I faked it as well as I could.

I doubt if I will be able to get back to see the progress before I leave. Susara will be away in August, and I will be leaving Africa the first week of September. But if I can I will!!!

I am so glad that Kelly at IHAN and her friends sent the box!!!! These ladies will have so much fun stitching and creating. As I saw some of the fabrics being distributed…. I was drooling, since I haven’t seen many of them… in person or online either!

Don’t they just look over joyed and thrilled?

Thank you Kelly and Friends for helping me to pay it forward!

More Later- Beth

 

The Fast Lane

Since my last post about Mark…. life here has hit the FAST lane, well that is how it seems. Sure there has been down time… but not enough to do much with and certainly, nothing to write on the blog about, and the time thieves (those little things that eat up the time… but you can’t remember). Of course it doesn’t help when we are waiting for “The DATE”. I don’t think I have mentioned here on the blog…. that we will be returning to the states. 1 year before our tour is up, and a bit earlier than the 5 year plan we came with. The DH has been offered a new position, and of course he accepted. We will be returning to the DC area!!! Of course all the headaches that come with a move are now showing up. But more about those as they become more of a reality…. Once we have a date, it should move really fast.

One of the time thieves -one of my co workers was moving… and needed some assistance. She had some scheduling conflicts… so I volunteered to sit with the movers while they packed her belongings. The next week I took her to a medical test…. and picked her up later in the day. The other was Axel, since we have been here… his allergy thing has been much easier than in the states, but for some reason he has had 3 subcutaneous cysts burst. The most recent one was on his neck…. can we just say oh YUCK!!!! The physical part is easy, but it’s the twice a day meds that take up the time… and energy.

In the quilting department (and finally some pictures)… I have completed 2 more Birthday blocks for my friends and took my turn hosting the ladies. I nearly forgot that my date for hosting was at the end of June…. whew… I made Baked Ziti for dinner and strawberry short cake for dessert. It was delicious.

At the beginning of June we celebrated Corriannes birthday. She selected birdhouses for her blocks and provided a black background and a color swatch…. we could make any size of block…. She wanted ‘bright’ primary colors.

In the middle of the month we celebrated Laetitias birthday. Her block was very specific in size and background, which she provided. She has a plan and wanted a flower. If she had provided more background I would have made another!!!! Somehow I let that block out of the house without a picture!

The small group, belongs to the larger group, the Jacaranda Quilters Guild of Pretoria. Each small group was asked to make a block to represent their small/home group. This was our block. We have all participated in the building of the block in some way. I did the quilting!!!

I also finished the last of the baby boy quilts. I was planning to ship it, but I don’t think I can squish it down enough to fit in the size box I can ship from here, (10” x 8” x 2”).

I also had to put a sleeve on the black, white & bright quilt, so it could be hung at a small show. So I spent a morning playing with a little Embroidery machine, a Brother, I bought before we left the states…. WoW how much fun can they be? I put the name of the quilt on the Sleeve, playing with several fonts and thread colors. I can see how and why some have the ‘super duper’ embroidery machines.

In between these few quilty things…. I have entered a baking contest at the Embassy 4th of July Party. And I won! THE Category (Brownie/Blondie), THE Extra Ingredient (macadamia nuts) and THE Overall Best Dessert!!! I submitted the Blondies and the Decadent Chocolate Brownie. Woo Hoo! I have sort of established myself as a baker here. I usually make something for the bake sale table and for the quilters, I take the dessert to the hostess. Sometimes its extravagant, like cheesecake, but sometimes as simple as snicker doodle cookies.

All About Mark

Last year I told you all about Maria, the lady that keeps my house, and how wonderful she is. I also meant to tell you about the gardener that keeps our yard beautiful. I have a big yard, and it is on a hill, so it takes some pushing to cut the grass!

This is Mark. He is a very bright,diligent hard worker. He arrives here every time wearing a brilliant smile. I never have to tell him what needs to be done. He arrives in the morning and commences to work on the yards. I live in a compound of 4 homes. Mark cares for 3 of the 4 yards. He starts in one yard and works his way from yard to yard. He uses all the tools available to care for all of the yards. If I want something moved, arranged, dug, planted…. whatever -he does it. He keeps the limbs from the electric fence, keeps the leaves raked, the weeds at bay, he picks up after the dogs and waters the lawn twice a week.

Mark is from Botswana. He is 29 soon to be 30. He has a family; a wife, a young son 11 and a daughter 8, with a new one on the way. Due this month. He has a proper house in Botswana and goes home 2 or 3 times a year to see his family. He will be going home soon to see his wife and new baby. I gave him his baby quilt so that he would have it when he went home. It is one of the ‘baby boy’ quilts I completed recently. (Edit: Mark is the proud daddy to another baby boy, born 6/25/2012!)
Because of cultural custom, he will not be allowed to see his new offspring for 3 weeks, so it will be a long wait for him. Mark is open and is always answering my questions about him, his family and the life and traditions of his culture and country. Just recently I asked him about “Lobola”. Lobola is the bride price that the groom must pay to the brides family for the privilege of marriage. Mark paid his lobola in livestock, cows, goats and sheep, and is still paying. He still has several sheep and goats to go.

Mark, like Maria is industrious. In January of 2011 Mark asked me if I would hold some money for him. He wanted to save some money to buy a car. I said sure, no problem. Every month Mark would give me some money… and soon he had quite the pot of money. Cars here are expensive. Very expensive. You still see vehicles that are 30 years old on the road, and they are not vintage antique, but daily driving cars. In October of last year, he thought he found a car to buy, but was a little short. Mark came to me and asked to borrow some money. But unlike most of the South African help, who often ask for monetary assistance, without provisions for repayment and really have no intent to pay it back. Mark had a repayment plan. He did not buy that car. He did buy a car and now he is saving money again.
Last year Mark mentioned that some day he would like to open a photographic business in his hometown; near Francistown, Botswana. Something, his wife could do, from a store front. I formulated a plan to help him with that…. He would need a digital camera and a printer. Both are pretty expensive in South Africa. So I found a camera (Carrie another of his clients had one she didn’t need any longer) so she gave it to him. I told him to go out and take some pictures of his friends -like portraits. to play with the camera and get used to it. He is a natural with the camera. I wanted him to practice with the camera before giving him the rest of the gift-a small printer; that prints 4x6 prints. This gift is his birthday present for this year and last. He was so tickled that I had thought enough of him to give a gift he wanted. He kept telling me I was making his dreams come true.
I am so lucky to have found Mark and Maria. They are both warm and generous people and I have been fortunate to know them. I will also miss them very much when we leave here.
More later….. Beth

Jacaranda Quilters of Pretoria

Yesterday was the winter Friendship meeting. There are only 3 a year. These meeting are the equivalent of the end of year meeting for a monthly guild in the US. There are lots of vendors, -many quilt stores are run from homes here, and going from shop to shop can really eat up a day. So the friendship meetings are for shopping as well. The meeting starts at 9, so the vendors have to get up awfully early to get here and get set up!

Like any quilt guild meeting there was a short business meeting and then, we had a program on color from a member of the guild. There are usually demonstrations at the meeting too, but this time we built a color wheel, that we used during her talk, when she would describe the relationships of color. A very useful tool.

The meetings are also a small quilt show. The small group that I belong to, Kwetterkwilters, and another, Frangipanis, were charged with procuring the displays. Each group showed off some of the things members made -projects, challenges or round robins. It was obvious once our display was up that the 7 of us are NOT afraid of color. Our group put up, last years birthday blocks (miniature log cabins), this years challenge (12x12 Word), miscellaneous small quilts, along with a few larger ones and the postcards that we have all received so far!!!

The postcard display was a favorite among the members. We each pinned our postcards to a ribbon and hung the ribbon over a black background. It really made all the colors pop.

The first stand has the Miniature Log Cabins (birthday blocks) and the last stand has some of the groups smaller pieces. Since I didn’t have much in the way of group projects, I took my Black, White & Bright quilt, and was surprised to win ‘Viewers Choice’. It was quite fun to win!!!

This may well have been my last Jacaranda meeting… The next one is in October. I have met some really wonderful, warm and very generous ladies through quilting. I am sure glad I am a quilter.

More Later!!!

Beth

A Little More Quilting

I’ve spent a little time in the sewing room these last few weeks. Nothing monumental… like a huge quilt… just a bunch of small projects.

The first weekend in May the Kwetterqwilters went on a Retreat. They had a small cabin with 3 bedrooms, kitchen, dinning area and a living room. Not much eating went on in the dinning area!!!! I went up for the day, Saturday with one of the other members of the group. I was going to work on my postcards, but forgot to pack the silk. So I was the slave and did the chores…. pin basting, seam ripping and dishes.

The smallest project was postcards. Round 3 of the International Swap. There is a theme for those that need one -‘Where You Want to Be’… and this time I did not use the theme to make mine. The general idea… is the Sky or Aurora Borealis… I am showing just 2 here…. The fibers are silk tailings, from what I can’t remember the vendor telling us. They were acquired at the last IQF Chicago Show 2010, (before being relocated to Cincinnati Ohio in 2011). My friend Karen (she blogs here) and I saw these brightly stuffed bags of loose silk threads for $2 per bag. I bought two!!! I had fun attaching the fibers to the Peltex with a few anchoring stitches and then using beads and findings to hold more of the silk in place. These were fun. These postcards will need to be sent in sleeves.

I also made 2 Birthday blocks…. Both were houses.

Marinas was first. She had some specific requirements. It had to finish at 6 inches and the house had to have a red roof. The block is a little bigger, so Marina could cut this down and square it up herself. This is an original design and was lots of fun to make. I wish I had thought to cut away some of the fir tree so it wouldn’t show so much under the house.

The other house was for Hester. She didn’t have an restrictions!!!! This is a semi original design. I have a line drawing of this house, but it is about any inch big, so I had to redraw to a larger size…. and things changed a little. I did consider putting some smoke coming from the chimney and a door knob, but thought maybe that might be added with the quilting… so I have left that up to the recipient.

 

I have also been busy waiting for fabric!

It takes so long for it to arrive in the mail (2-3 weeks). But, when an online shop, takes the order and then waits a week or more to cut…. the wait becomes much too long. I have been waiting for blue fabrics. I thought I had picked a bunch that would go together, (even used the design wall of an online shop to see all of them together). Well When the fabrics arrived…. some major issues, so I had to order more. Once enough

arrived I got busy… making 3 baby ‘boy’ quilts. One of my favorite quick patterns is the Disappearing 9 Patch… although it really isn’t all that quick. It does make a really nice quilt. I got the tops done, but trying to find a crisp blue and white fabric for the back was a huge obstacle, to make matters worse, when I did, they were either out or didn’t have all I wanted. So 2 of the 3 are done. The first one goes to a fellow my DH works with. His first child was born last month… a whole month early. More about where one of the others is going…. in another post.

Waiting for backing #3, in 2 more weeks, (well and a few stash builders for ME!) I am still up in the sewing space, making another birthday block today.

More Later- Beth

A Few More Pictures

This was the view from the little Chalet we stayed in over the Easter weekend. We were up on a ridge and we had a deck out over the little canyon. You can nearly see down to Cape Town in this picture!!!! (not really we are a long way from Cape Town). The little house you see in the picture is another place to stay. It really looks charming up close.

These little birds were really small, about the size of a pair of rolled socks. As I was driving up to our Chalet one morning…. They were in some really long grass.  Not in the least worried about me…. didn’t see mom anywhere, but I’m sure she was around somewhere in the long grass.

One of my favorite places to visit was a little pond that formed next to the road. Lots of bugs and a few flowers…. butterflies, dragonflies and this fly with HUGE red eyes getting a drink…

And lastly, a bird in flight. This is a European Bee Eater. These birds are very colorful. They soar, turn and dive for insects and are fast! Very difficult to get a picture. I was also trying to get one of the underside, but alas none of those turned out.

These are the last of the Easter pictures- next up some Quilty ones.

As Always….. More Later,

Beth

The sky….

One of the most spectacular things we saw on our Easter trip to the Hunting Lodge was the moon rise and the sun rises/sets!!! Just spectacular. While there we had a full moon. I missed the most exciting blood orange moon rise because I didn’t see it coming up behind the trees, which were behind me while I was watching the fire…. Oh well, maybe next time!

The moon rise while the sun was setting…. so I have a little pink in the picture too.

And a bunch of Sun ups or downs…. does it really matter? The sky was very orange.

And lastly a photo of a Rhinoceros. This is the male, and as you can see he is a little deformed. The defamation is man-made. Here, in Africa, not just South Africa, the Rhino is in a dangerous place. The Oriental medicines think that the Rhino horn contains special characteristics and is a very highly prized ingredient. So to help protect the Rhinos life the horn is surgically removed. The horn is like a fingernail, it will regrow, but then it will have to be removed again. It’s a sad sight, but much better than dead!

More Later!  Beth