Pathways

In an effort to consume more vegetables I suggested to Bob that we establish one night a week as a salad night. Since he is not a meat-and-potatoes kind of guy, he readily agreed. We've both enjoyed our Salad Mondays for the past 3 weeks. Last night I augmented the salad with roasted vegetables, specifically sweet potatoes and yellow peppers. It was so tasty. We both felt satisfied afterwards and it just FEELS like a more healthful pathway.






In February a friend and I took a wool applique class at a local quilt shop. I chose to make the saltbox house pincushion. That evening I stitched the sheep although it hasn't been made into a pincushion yet. I added my own little touches to the pattern, which was fun. My sister gave me the beautiful wool. As a rug hooker she has a wool cloth stash that makes a wool lover swoon. Some of it, such as the green I used for the grass under the sheep, is hand-dyed.





During February the deer migrated through our woods at dusk, on their path to their night-time bedding place. Usually I practice my pipes about this time and though they could hear me and see me, were not frightened. Maybe they even like the pipes. I took this photo through the porch windows. The most deer I saw passing through was 11 with one of them being a buck. This past week there have been no deer but I saw a beautiful fox with his dinner hanging out of his mouth.



Last night I started knitting a puppy dog from Susan Anderson's book Itty-Bitty Toys. Like most toys, it not mindless knitting because there is quite a bit of shaping. I almost got the body done so that was a good start.

Back into Blogland

It's been a while since I've updated as I've been busy with a few other activities. My illicit affair with quilting seems to be on the wane. Those quilts and seductive fabrics did eat into my knitting time. I would go downstairs to my sewing area and 3 hours would just fly by. Since January I've made 2.5 quilts. Each was a learning experience. I am not so eager to head down to my sewing machine these days. Hopefully I still have enough quilting mojo to finish the last quilt. We will soon be into the piping competition season and so more time will be spent with the band. Last Saturday we had an all day workshop preparing our competition tunes. So one fiber-related hobby is enough for me. Let's hope I can stick with that plan.

Today I finished my 2 year term as President of my P.E.O. Chapter. Whew! It was a great experience but at the same time, it is a good feeling to hand it over to the next person. Today we had a transition meeting. It felt strange to walk away with no bags or "stuff". A week ago I did a major cleaning in the area of the basement dubbed "P.E.O. Central", getting everything in order and packed up for the next president and tossing as much paperwork as possible. Today I went down there several times just to admire my handiwork. Who knows how long the tidiness will last.

Spring seems to be on its way. The photo was taken during our last big wet snow. We awoke to a beautiful scene in our woods. A tree on the lot next to us had fallen but no damage was done. All the snow is beginning to melt now and we should see some very warm temperatures at the end of the week. For some reason I am not fed up with winter yet. Don't get me wrong...I am greatly looking forward to spring. I can't wait to see the wildflowers coming up through the brown leaves in our woods. The birds are already singing there mating calls. Although I went out today just wearing a shawl because I am tired of winter coats, I don't have that cabin fever feeling yet. Another snow wouldn't bother me that much. That may change soon.

What I am longing for is a good rain, the kind you can smell. I love the smell of rain!

I have several finished projects but need to get photos of them. Among the projects are a Wool Weaver's Shawl, another Aestlight Shawl, and a baby sweater.

I made two trips down to my folks' in February for a special reason. Lewis and Clark Community College had an exhibit of my dad's work. The exhibit included watercolor paintings, jewelry, steam engines, photography, furniture, and wood art. Click here to see a quick video of the exhibit. Give it plenty of time to load. If you have trouble viewing it then check out the You Tube version which is linked on the same page.

Knitting vs Quilting

This affair that I'm having with quilting is turning out to be somewhat serious. I actually went into a craft store last week and did not buy the Interweave Knits Holiday Issue or Interweave Accessories Issues. Nothing appealed to me, especially the price of $14.99. Am I the only one that thinks that is a bit steep for a periodical? After a quick browse and a shrug of the shoulders, I headed off to the fabric department. See what I mean? It is bad.

There are a few issues I have with quilting though. It takes up a lot of space. You need to have a place for a sewing machine and ironing board and leave them out. The photo shows the area I've staked out in our lower level. It is just too time-consuming to get the equipment out every time. You also need a work surface for cutting and placement of fabric. Then there is storage of the fabric, rotary cutter, scissors, cutting mat, marking pens, and a host of other tools. When starting on a project you need the various fabrics for the front of the quilt, thread, backing fabric, binding fabric, and batting. This makes the ol' head spin.

Then there is the problem of what to do with the finished product. While quilts are useful for keeping warm, other quilt projects are not so useful. Exhibit A is the table runner I just finished. It is pretty and I'm proud of it but how many table runners does a person need? They really serve no purpose. Quilted totes are useful, but again, how many does one need or want? You can't wear quilts. Some people wear quilted jackets. I am no fashion expert but suffice to say, it is a rare figure who can pull off one of those jackets. Perhaps .05% of the population. And I bet you feel like a snowman wearing one of them.

Knitting is so simple. To start a project you need two things: (1) the proper needles, which you quite probably have on hand if you have been knitting for a while, and (2)the yarn. A blunt needle for sewing up the ends can last for decades. I've had mine for eons and feel quite attached to it. A measuring tool can be handy. Your project only takes up the space of your knitting basket or bag. I've managed to keep my stash under control so it only occupies two large plastic bins and one or two cloth tote bags. Most of my stash consists of wool left over from completed projects. I have one UFO lurking in the closet (Fair Isle Vest). Note to self: do a stash busting project soon.

The usefulness of knitted items knows no bounds. In fact, most knitted items fall into the functional category. People generally look good in them, too, especially babies and children. I wonder what percentage of knitters actually started knitting when pregnant? I get great pleasure in seeing my loved ones in their sweaters I've knitted for them. My husband is still wearing sweaters I made 30 years ago.

A big bonus for knitting is the portability factor. Take it anywhere with the exception of important business meetings, church services, and funerals. My husband is having cataract surgery tomorrow. I don't even mind a wait at the hospital. That means knitting time for me! I've found that with televisions going in waiting rooms, it is best for me to take my iPod, loaded with some knitting podcasts, and my knitting. I'm surely the most content person in a waiting room.

So I'm trying to analyze why I've gone off on this quilting binge, against all odds and against all reasonable arguments. Firstly, the fabrics are like sirens to the fiber soul. I think there is some kind of a pheremone injected into the fabric that lures one toward them. The colors and prints are nostalgic and feed part of me that thinks I would have liked living about 1900. (Only a little part of me.) The biggest factor is that I love tackling something new. While I have done some machine quilting before (c 1981) the tools and methods have changed considerably. It is a whole new world of fibery goodness out there.

So I figure I'll make a quilt or two and this little itch will be scratched for good. I'm hoping!

Family Heirlooms

On Sunday afternoon our home was on a Christmas tour for our church. The event gave me cause to bring out the family heirlooms that are normally stored carefully away.

We call this room (which serves as my husband's study and guest bedroom) "The Finger Suite" because most of the furniture has a connection to my great-grandfather, Henry Finger, of Marissa IL. He made the walnut four-poster bed in 1928 and his name and the year are neatly carved in block letters on the back of the headboard . When I was a child I slept in this bed with my grandmother when I spent the night at their home. I remember waking in the middle of the night to her snoring and trying to get back to sleep. She always told me to give her a swift kick if she snored but I never wanted to do that.

The library table, the candlesticks, and a stool (not in this photo) were also made by Henry Finger. The teddy bear in the foreground was a Christmas gift to my grandmother, Helen Finger Emons, in 1904. Her family had visited the 1904 World's Fair where they saw the newly introduced teddy bears for the first time. She remembered this toy being the first and one of the few specific gifts she ever asked for.

The Dresden Plate quilt on the bed was made by my great-grandmother, Jane Anderson Finger, probably about 1920.

The three quilts hanging out of the quilt chest are older. The two larger ones were made by my great-grandmother when she was a girl, in the late 1870's.

The walnut quilt chest was purchased by Henry Finger at an auction for $1.00. I think he got a good deal, don't you?

The Friendship Quilt is dated 1890. It was made by my great-grandmother before she was married. My grandmother remembered most of the people who contributed pieces to this quilt. The stitching is amazing. The pieces are silk, taffeta, velvet, and even some upholstery fabric. Some of the silks are deteriorating but it is overall in excellent condition. It is quite large. You are seeing less than half of it in the photo, as it is folded in half and some is draped back over the chair.

Being the caretaker of these quilts is a big responsibility.

It was not uncommon for men to contribute to friendship quilts. Henry Finger managed to get his name on the quilt also. I think all the fancy stitching around his piece hints that he might have been a special beau at the time.

Thanks for bearing with my little family history tangent. I have finished several knitting projects that I will be sharing soon after I get some decent photographs.