I needed some playtime!

 My inner six year old threw a lot of tantrums last week because there were too many "have-to's".  So I was happy that on Saturday at the Museum quilt Guild meeting, we got to play in a workshop with Marija Vujcic. She showed us her"Cheater bargello" technique, which many of us fell in love with last December when she first came to guild.
This piece serves as her class sample.  It is around 30 x 40.  The applique is optional on the project.



The hard part for some of us was finding a nice gradation or "ombre" fabric to use.  My BFF Mary solved that problem by dyeing her own fabric.  (none of us thought to take a picture of it before she cut it) After this was taken she added some yellow accent strips near the center.  Now it really glows!

I used a piece of fabric I bought from "Sew Batik" at the GVQC show a few weeks ago.  I was afraid there wasn't enough of a color change to make it interesting, but am well pleased with this.  (sorry this was taken before I cut the rest of the strips open)  When I got home I found a lovely batik in my stash to use as an accent.  I have a plan for some applique.  I just need the time to try it out.

One of the other ladies in the class used a fabulous Kaffe Fassett (or Brandon Mably?) print  as her accent fabric. 





Then there's this one ( below) which started with a very subtle grey gradation. Marija allowed us to delve into her stash for fabrics, and the yellow print adds just the right amount of zing to this.






I know I can't wait to see what everyone does with theirs.  No one left this class feeling bad about their project.  It was just plain fun!  And Marija is delightful!  :-)










Yesterday Mary Lee came over to play with the kittens.  She got a lot of enjoyment out of them climbing all over me.  These two have decided my hair is their favorite toy!
 They are coming all too quickly to the time when they will leave me to find their furr-ever homes.  But I got to enjoy them (and spoil them) for a while!

My friend Kathi keeps showing up with fantastic projects she creates using befunky.com.  I Haven't been bitten by the bug to make anything into a quilt yet, but I did have fun playing with some images. This one is my favorite so far.  I need to figure out that clone thing a bit better, though.  And having seen what Elaine did with the "liquefy" function on her piece, I think I'd like to try that.  If only photoshop came with a kid to sit next to me and say this button does that.  (I tried it once and found it to be highly UN-intuitive.)


Remember my vow to not use roundup in the garden this year?  I have stuck with it, but the edges of my gardens are filling right back in.  I saw a recipe for a weed killer made with vinegar and was going to try it, but lost the recipe.  In my search I found this home test.  I realize I will have to reapply, but it must still be better than trying to pull all the weeds.  Maybe next week I will post pictures of all the gardens so anyone who looks ( I always assume someone is actually reading my blog) can appreciate what I'm up against.
By the way, in my searches, most people do NOT recommend adding salt to this recipe. 

I am grateful for:
Mary found a house and will not have to live in a box.
Lucas is now a homeowner- something he has been working toward for a long time!
My hubby is still willing to put up with me.
Having a good time in spite of the quality of the "entertainment" provided.
All the rain has made weeding easier this year. (which is good because it also makes them grow :-)