The asters have started blooming and that means only one thing — summer is over.
This year I attended summer camp. Well, it was a virtual summer camp, sponsored by Modern Quilt Studio. We all worked on a Mystery Quilt together. Well, together separately. If you are interested in the pattern, you can purchase it here. I’m not sure how long it will be available…possibly only until Oct. 1, 2023.
I was very pleased with my color palette, as it caused a great deal of agonizing on the front end of the project. But I was very happy with the way it turned out. The quilt is approximately 83 x 60.
In between installments, I was inspired to start some handwork. I really haven’t done any hand embroidery in years. Yet, my garden this year got me interested in trying something new.
Here is a pic of one of the cosmos in the garden.
And below is my interpretation of this flower in hand embroidery. Obviously, it takes quite a bit longer to stitch out when it’s done by hand…and designed in my head as I go along. A few more days, maybe a week.
And then what am I going to do with it? Well that’s a good question. I’ll have to think about it when it’s done.
I hope you have been keeping your head and hands busy this summer. As I sit here, it’s over 90 degrees outside. The warm weather seems to hang on longer into the fall season these days. But I know it’s time to start hauling out the autumn decor. And even as I stitch a piece of summer onto this fabric, I am thinking about the cooler weather, orange lights, and spooky trees.
No one uses paper any more. I know. Just a quick email or text…how are you? what’s up? how’s everything? hey, thanks (I may be using too much punctuation.)
But I am a card writer. I would much rather tell someone how I feel in long form. And if I want to confound my son, like sending a message in code, I use cursive, which no one in younger generations can interpret.
Last year, or maybe the year before, or maybe even 2019, I purchased some card stock for machine embroidery.
I did not purchase anything new to make these. That’s part of my new goal, to be as much of a non-consumer as possible unless it is electronic. The designs don’t count, at least not in my book, as they are digital–a simple download, and off we go.
Here are a few tips if you want to work with machine embroidery and cardstock:
Use designs specifically digitized for cards. Unless you are daring and a pro, I don’t recommend trying to use any design that is stitch-heavy. It’s just not worth the hassle.
Use a sticky back cutaway stabilizer like Stabilstick Cutaway from OESD
Score the paper side of the stabilizer, and remove it from inside the hoop. You hoop the stabilizer first, paper side up, then score it with a straight pin. Don’t be afraid. Then just tear it out of the inside of the hoop.
On OESD designs, the first stitch is for placement of the card. The first color of the design is a stitched rectangle that goes directly onto the stabilizer and shows you where to place the card. It saves you from some fiddling you might have to do with other designs to get the placement centered.
General machine embroidery tip: If the machine says it will take 15 minutes to stitch out, allow 30 minutes. The time allowed for stitching is just that: stitching time. It doesn’t account for any thread changing time, or cutting of jump stitches or your general speed that you like to work. The more thread changes, the more time you should allow “over” the predicted time.
Always start with a well-oiled machine, a full bobbin and a new needle (sharp or Microtex 80/12.)
This Christmas card from OESD was quite stitch heavy, and I’m not sure I would do it again. It required an applique for the black background. I measured the placement stitch and cut a piece of Kraft-Tex to fit. It turned out well, but I did not appreciate the amount of time involved for one card.
You can see the back of one of the cards. I think you can cover that up with another piece of cardstock. But I thought that some of the charm was that it looked as nice from behind as it did from the front.
As someone who loves stationery, I found these lovely and easy to stitch, for the most part. The designs do come with thread charts and instructions, but it’s a lot more fun to choose your own color way.
Finally, for the last card in the box, I took one of my photos (a peace lily bloom, with a pointsettia background). I transferred it onto the card using Transfer Artist Paper. It was simple and easy, and now I have a set of personalized cards for all occasions.
I hope you still write letters from time to time. I love to receive them and I think others do too. In a world where everything is fleeting, fast and electronic, let’s cherish a little bit of slow communication.
Yesterday, I went for my usual walk through the woods. I took the more scenic path this time, as it gets too buggy and overgrown during the summer for me to comfortably pass.
But this time of year, some of the weeds have died back, the crunch of leaves is underfoot, keeping some of the mud at bay, and the insects have thinned out.
So I took the road less traveled onto the ridge above the creek.
And that’s where I discovered the fallen sentinel.
This old oak had been standing at the top of the ridge, majestically leaning out over the cliff for as many years as I can remember hiking here. Its trunk is at least three feet in diameter.
The last time I passed through it was early spring, before the foliage filled out, while the creek gurgled its way around the bend. At the time, I could see the tree was getting too close to the edge. Or the edge was eroding too close to the tree. I gingerly stepped close and patted the bark of the tree. “My friend..this does not look great. But the cliff won’t erode that fast. I imagine it will be at least a few years.”
I went on my way.
The torrential rains of this past spring that prevented our farmers from getting their crops in the ground also took a toll on the ridge. As I wound my way through yesterday, I stopped in my tracks. The landmarks had changed, my bearings were rattled.
The earth had shifted.
And an old friend had tumbled.
I surveyed the area where the tree once stood. Everything had changed. Was it here? Was it slightly further back? I could no longer even recognize the place where it had once stood. It must have been months. It must have been the downpours. It must have been inevitable.
Still, I found myself sending a little blessing. And immediately wondering it the forest preserve would allow it to stay there, damming the creek.
I bowed my head and turned on the path to continue my journey. As I left I saw chipmunks scurrying and playing along the trunk and branches of the tree below.
Ever adjusting. Ever changing. Exploring a new landscape.
Not sure if it’s my age, or my season of life, or the times we live in, but these days, I’ve been thinking a lot more about SLOWING DOWN.
I used to see how many quilts or projects I could finish in a year. How many blog posts? How many pictures taken? How many trips? How much fabric? What’s next? And next after that? And after that?
I’m not that old.
OK, I’m a little old. Old enough to realize that maybe we’re not meant to live our lives in such a constant hurry.
Richard Rohr, a Franciscan priest, has me thinking these days about what he calls the first half of life vs. the second half. The first half of life is pretty frantic…working, working, working to establish oneself, to acquire, to achieve and to “become.”
The second half of life (if we do it right, according to Fr. Richard) is when we’re better at giving it all back. Re-packaging, adding wisdom, paying it forward. Now, I’m certainly in the second half of life (even farther than that, unless I plan to live well into my hundred and teens), so I am feeling the need to do just that — down-size, slow down, appreciate more, waste less and generally live a bit closer to nature, to my origins. To leave a smaller footprint. To listen to what the world needs and not just the raging, never-filled loudness of my own concerns.
I think those of us approaching “elderhood” owe it to the next generation to be examples and thoughtful guides.
So with that in mind, I’m going to spend more time appreciating what is, and thinking about what needs doing vs. what I want to do.
Of course I will keep sewing and quilting. I have a room full of fabric that would be criminal to waste.
But what else needs doing?
That takes time, listening and contemplation.
I’m not an expert at this second half of life thing. Quilting friends will understand. I’m a UFO.
Once again I heard the expression “glamping.” This time it was referring to a new site in Michigan, called The Fields of Michigan…a blueberry farm that offers luxury tents on their property.
I am not going to judge anyone young enough or adventurous enough to want to spend a few nights outdoors. It can be fun. That has not really been my experience, but, hey, to each his own. For $329 per night, I’ll take the Four Seasons in basically any city or town anywhere.
But in honor of that time of year when people seem to want to celebrate camping, I am re-upping a blog post I wrote several years ago:
I’m guilty of spending a teensy bit less time in the sewing studio, and a bit more time out in the yard these days…like most of you, I’m guessing.
It will be raining off and on this weekend, so between trips to the store and out in the garden, I might get in a bit of organizing/sewing.
But for now, here’s a tribute to those of us who cannot resist the flowers. They cheer us, bloom under almost any circumstances, and lead the way into a new season.
This is the time of year to run outside with your camera. I love when the wildflowers bloom. It reminds me that the season is short and back-to-school is coming. If you haven’t been out enjoying these summer days, here is your chance!
No one uses actual cameras any more, they just don’t. I know. Why would you? Everyone is armed with a phone with a camera and instant video. A modern luxury or curse, depending on how you look at it.
I was one of the last people to switch from a film camera to digital, and even then, I would not make the switch until Canon delivered a DSLR. (Digital Single Lens Reflex.)
To me, nothing is more satisfying than the mechanical “click” of a 35 mm.
This changed the world for me. Finally, I could shoot digitally, and get the kind of quality I had grown to love from my Canon. (My first 35mm was given to me as a high school graduation gift by my parents…specifically my Dad, who loved photography, and shot with what is now considered a vintage 35 mm Leica from Germany. Somewhere in this house, I still have that camera. Don’t make me look for it now.)
But the new DSLR meant I could also still live in the world of lenses — zoom, standard, and wide angle.
I recently bought the lens of my dreams.
For those of you who are photo savvy, it’s 180mm, f/3.5 Macro USM.
It’s magic.
It lays pixie dust on everything in its frame.
It’s designed for macro photography….so flowers, jewelry, nature.
I ran around the house and started taking pics of ordinary items, watching them become extraordinary.
Now this particular lens does not have image stabilization. That’s $$$$$. So I must use it with a tri-pod. But what fun.
Here’s a little sample. I can’t wait to use it for more. Everything in the world is a small miracle if you look closely enough.
