Friday, April 30, 2010

love for 44 cents...

simply beautiful discovery
at the post office today...
.
so lovely in fact
i bought a sheet to share
and a sheet to display with
my collection
of all things purple
they remind me
of the
lovely lavender flowers
a top our wedding cake
almost twenty four years ago

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

if life is a bowl...

of thread...
i am one
happy woman
.
are these little bowls adorable
or what
thanks to my new friend kate
i was
roaming the aisles of
crate and barrel
when i stumbled upon them
perfect to display threads
i decided
in the kitchen of our new house

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

cross-pollination...

...moving right along
to our next
project with frolic
.
cross-pollination seems
appropriate for this
2010 spring season
of extreme high pollen count
i wonder what sandy had in mind
when she named this pattern
i'm curious about those little details
this will be a first for us
utilizing a jelly roll and
turnovers
in the same quilt
should be fun

Sunday, April 25, 2010

all pinned up...

and ready to go
to the
quilting machine...
.
the fabric is
is the pattern referred to
so perfect for sarah to stitch
with straight lines and
little pattern matching necessary
we plan to use a
large flower as our guide
wish us luck

Saturday, April 24, 2010

scarlet & gray...

sarah and i have been
pasting up color cards
for the store
.

we will be referring to them as we

purchase
bolts of basic fabric
today we were inspired by the
scarlet and gray
is a favorite combination of ours
looks like it is for
her majesty Queen Elizabeth II too
.
photo courtesy of yahoo
oh how I would love
to have that hat
it would feel so regal
walking into
the horseshoe for
tj's graduation
in june
and then displaying
it with our buckeye themed fabrics
this fall
p.s. isn't she just beautiful at 84

Friday, April 23, 2010

bedazzled...

everyone in life
deserves
a cheering section
.
click to enlarge
a fan club
someone
or even a group of people
who sings your praise
who supports your passions
someone who reminds you that you are
appreciated
i am lucky enough to have such friends
and lately one has been emailing me
often
she loves the concept of the quilt store
how i have tied it all together
with sarah
but in your history
you missed
a major component of who you are
she wrote
then on tuesday
i posted a picture of tj sewing
and when she blew up the photo
there it was
the story board from bedazzled
she wrote again
joyce, you must show us that collage
please talk about your years as
a development officer and
how you included your talents as a seamstress
in each event
while raising millions of dollars
for the good of cleveland
ok so there you have it
a story of one event
for the cleveland institute of music
and one custom ensemble
which i was still hemming
as my husband drove to the event

Thursday, April 22, 2010

cherish nature...

robin eggs and
butterflies
and honeybees...
.
and vines
tiny leaves and polka dots
damask in chocolate
aqua blue and olive green
the window's cracked
i hear the birds chirp
and feel springtime warmth
through the glass
as i stitch with this earthday treasure
designed by fellow ohioan

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

purple passion...

it should come as no surprise
that i wish to have
a grand selection...
.
of purple
in jellen's house of fabric
for some reason
i don't often find it in quilt stores
so i got to thinking
maybe i will strive to have the best
collection of purple
in the midwest
so i started going through all the
moda basics
to see what they have
i'm happily off to a good start
speaking of happy
can you imagine my excitement
when i viewed
guess you know where i'm headed tonight

Tuesday, April 20, 2010

do real men sew...

as i have been spreading
the word
about my new quilt store...
.
the most frequently asked question
so far is...
will you have classes for men
of course
i reply
i've been teaching boys
to sew for years
above is my own first born
when he was seven
i've discovered a few blogs you must check out
and be sure to go here today
for a great giveaway

Sunday, April 18, 2010

button,button...

who's got the button...
i'm searching
for the perfect...
.
...buttons for
two adorable little
bluebird eyes
i think i see them
third row
box four
a quick find
now that i've organized
the button stash

Saturday, April 17, 2010

frolicing freely...

...all night long
by morn...
two little
.
bluebirds are born
i seriously covet all
charm pack patterns
designed by sandy gervais
easy peasy to make
and
charming as ever
her charm creation for
frolic
love it
now i need to search for
two eyes

Friday, April 16, 2010

if i had a million dollars...

remember that song?
if i had a million dollars...

i wouldn't do anything differently...
because the excitement I feel
each time a box arrives
from the
is worth a million dollars
...today
mostly frolic
with a few coordinating cuts
from other
moda designers
like
me and my sister
and
pindots from american jane
and seven bella solids
it's going to be a busy weekend

Thursday, April 15, 2010

the promise of spring

oh how i need...
the blossoms
the beauty
.
the sunshine
the reminder of all things good
when there are so many
who try to render me
hopeless
who spew forth
poison
and fill time with
lies
and tend voids with
evil
i turn to the heavens
and i'm reminded once again
of the
promise of spring

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

a frolicing we'll go...

...a frolicing we'll go
high ho the merry oh
a frolicing we'll go...
.

to behave playfully
and uninhibitedly
to engage in merrymaking
describes me perfectly
the past few days
as i stitch
and romp about with this newest line
by sandy gervais

Monday, April 12, 2010

in with the new...

softer and muted
on trend
includes...
.
the 2010 color of the year...
turquoise
the new line up will have
40 core colors
25 from the former color families
10 hip and fashion forward
returns from in color lines
and 5 brand spanking
new debuts

Sunday, April 11, 2010

out with the old...

yes, it is true
it's time
to say goodbye...
.
to some of my favorites
color is such a
fickle thing
in one year...
...out the next
it's big this go around
shelli and crew
have termed it
a color renovation
although shocking to some
i rather enjoy the
freshness
of change

Saturday, April 10, 2010

like fine wine...

the deep beauty
and the
richness of tone
.
elegant eggplant and perfect plum
have kept their place
and will be permanently
joined by
in tone color
rich razzleberry
to complete a perfect trio

Friday, April 9, 2010

parting is such...

...sweet sorrow
i just can't imagine
life without you...
.
goodbye
orchid opulence, lovely lilac
almost amethyst
and my treasured favorite
...lavendar lace
it will be so hard letting go...

Thursday, April 8, 2010

quilt beginnings

our spring break
shop hop
is about to end...
.
one more stop at
on broad street
not too far from the capital building
i've been here a few times
always find something i like
it's also my columbus connection to pfaff
i've been a pfaff lover for many years
mostly because of their
integrated dual feed
perfect for bridal fabrics
even more suited for quilting
.
sarah found two more bolts
for her project
and
i think she is fast becoming a moda girl
she told the sales associate
she would like 1/2 yard of each please
you know at that moment
i was proud as a peacock

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

calico cupboard

in our quest to discover
quilt shops
in central ohio...
.
...we hopped on I-270 from grove city
heading east
way east to a place called pataskala
the further we drove
the more i wondered
if we truly needed to go this far
we finally arrived
at the rural shopping center
inside...
a charming collection
displayed in crisp white shelving
just like our plans
the store helper seemed friendly
we shared typical quilt store chit-chat
then she told me she is retired
from the
state office of mr/dd
where she started her career in
one of ohio's
former institutions
for the mentally challenged
a place where
some would have wanted to put my sarah
not that long ago
i can't imagine that
i told her what the services
were like today with the cuts in funding
and that sarah and i are opening
a quilt store in cleveland
to create an opportunity
for her and her friends
she told me of another mom
in southern ohio doing the same
for her son with Down syndrome
by opening a small machine shop
i felt empowered by that
knowing i'm not alone in this
journey
as sarah ages out of the school system
.
while we were chatting
sarah went to look for fabric
she picked a red and a blue
for her stampin' for america project
we talked of using fabric this year
her selections were right on
and one I did not recognize
it is by cheri strole
.
i'm so glad we made that drive
to pataskala

Tuesday, April 6, 2010

always in stitches

it's day three
of our shop hop
across central ohio
.
our first stop is in grove city
at the
charming, charming, charming
sarah immediately took to the book corner
caught her eye
i love when she finds something
that really interests her
it is an awesome sewing 101 manual
with some great projects
that will be perfect for her stitching level
.
we continued to mill
around the store
finding fun samples and displays
tucked here and there
i discovered a pattern line
i had not seen before
it was a shame we had to move on
i could have stayed in this store
all afternoon
and i should mention it is connected
to an equally charming
scrapbook store

Sunday, April 4, 2010

Saturday, April 3, 2010

hyacinths to feed the soul

if of thy mortal good thou art bereft,
and from thy slender store two loaves
alone to thee are left,

sell one, and with the dole
buy hyacinths to feed thy soul
gulistan of moslih eddin saadi
.
columbus, ohio

Friday, April 2, 2010

quilt trends

at first glance
it's pure
eyecandy
.
like sugar cane sweetness
the best collection
of contemporary fabrics
i've ever seen
gathered in one place
you can see over my shoulder
the entire line of amy butler
located right off of I-71 on 161
near historic worthington
quilt trends is a must visit
if you enjoy fresh and funky
or simply to expand your vision

Thursday, April 1, 2010

glass thimble

if one is patient
the rewards
in life are priceless...
.
back in 1982
while working on a masters in social work
i often came to this store
to purchase fabric
to take with me to my job
as a midnight to 8am case manager
at the battered women's shelter in columbus
quilting kept my hands and mind occupied
while waiting for the next call to come
in the middle of the night
from a terrified woman
seeking refuge and safety
i found on more than one occasion
that once she arrived
my fabric served as a distraction
to the evil lurking in her life
i began to teach a stitching class during the day
to give the women pained by violence
an outlet
for peaceful thought
and now
here i stand with my daughter
in the same glass thimble
working to share the same sewing skills
with her
for the very same reason...
peaceful thought