Quilts and Thoughts…

margaret | February 26, 2010

This is one of my portrait type patterns I’ve just converted into a downloadable pattern (a print version is still available).

One of my pattern testers said, “Nice pattern and much easier than one would think by looking at the picture!”

This pattern, “Steady” only has four colors and there aren’t any tiny pieces. You don’t have to be a cowboy to hang Steady on your wall!

Check out the pattern at my patterns2quilt website!

Category: Patterns | No Comments »
Tags: applique patterns

margaret | February 18, 2010

You know the old saying, “If you don’t use it, you lose it”…well…I lost it!

I unearthed my tatting shuttle the other day to show a friend how to use it. Oops…it’s supposed to look like this!

According to Wikipedia tatting dates to the early 19th century. It is a series of knots and loops and believe me, if you don’t “fling” your hand the correct way, you get a knot instead of a loop!

You wrap the thread around your left hand and use the shuttle to go over and under the loop on your hand. Next, you “fling” your fingers to move the stitch (if you are lucky) down onto the loop around your hand. That’s only half of the stitch. The shuttle is then put through the big loop on your left hand and once again you “fling” your fingers out to put the last half of the stitch on the big loop around your hand. Basically, that’s all there is to it! The stitches you have just created slide up and down on the big loop around your left hand. This movement allows you to make lots of stitches and slide them down the big loop until they form designs.

The problem arises with the “fling” of your left fingers. If you don’t “fling” properly you create one big knot. No movement, no design and it looks like mine above!

My husband’s grandmother, Mildred, took the time (and patience) to teach me to tat in 1968. I remember the year because she was born in 1800 and she was 68 at the time. Grandma told me she had tried all of her adult life to teach others to tat, but I was the first one to get it right! I sat on the couch for about six hours just “flinging” my left fingers and cutting off knots until I finally got the stitches to move!

I’ll never be as good at tatting as Grandma. She would sit and visit or watch tv and keep her shuttle going, creating yards and yards of tatting to give to friends. All of her pillow cases and towels had tatting attached, mine as well.

I’m going to buy more thread and revive my tatting fun. It really is a beautiful lace, created with just the shuttle and a “fling”.

Category: Current projects, General | 9 Comments »
Tags: tatting

margaret | February 13, 2010

It was announced yesterday that for the first time since records have been kept, it was snowing in 49 states! Well, here are three pics from Texas. We had a record breaking 14″!

Category: General | No Comments »
Tags: just for fun

margaret | February 6, 2010

I thought I’d introduce you to a few of my puppets. I really enjoy writing puppet scripts, which of course, means I must make puppets to go along with them. This is “Deplorabull” and his friend, “Imaheffer”. They were the first two puppets I made, and were in my first script. The scripts are humorous, uplifting and based on Scripture.

Deplorabull was about to be put out to “pasture” because it was his last rodeo and he was depressed. His friend Imaheffer was there to cheer him on and between the two of them, and a few other friends, they explained that with God you are “Unstoppable”. It happened to be the theme for that year’s LTC.

They also appear in other scripts with additional farm animals to make learning about values, parables, and Scripture fun, funny, and entertaining.

Next, is “Sycamore” he is obviously a tree, but a tree with good roots. The flowers are, “Lifeless”, “Wilted”, and “Droopy” and they represent the parable of seeds being scattered on rocky, poor soil. In this script they are “nourished” in a fun and exciting way to show children the value of reading the Bible.

In the play “Seeds”, the three scarecrows and the crow are in a “deep” conversation and the crow calls them a bunch of dummies on wooden crosses, but the “dummies” get the last laugh!

I use the scripts to help children learn how to behave in church, lessons from the Bible, what goes on in the morning services, the importance of regular attendance and how God is important in their lives. Children (and parents) are very receptive to the characters and scripts; they hardly know they are being taught!

Category: Current projects, General | 2 Comments »
Tags: just for fun, leadership training for Christ, ongoing projects, puppets

margaret | February 1, 2010

I’ve offered the rotary cutter as a separate graphic freebie, but this time I have put it with the cutting mat, ruler, and a piece of fabric. The mat, fabric, ruler, and rotary cutter are all together as one graphic. This graphic is free at my pattern website:  www.patterns2quilt.com.

Category: General | 1 Comment »
Tags: free quilting graphic