I mentioned a sweater set found in one of Mom's drawers. Here is a photo of the sweater and cap she knit for me so many years ago. She had experienced three miscarriages and was under complete bed rest for months. So, it's no surprise she knitted, painted, and wrote! Those were the days before TV, Internet, and mp3 players.

This little sweater was lovingly packed in a bag, along with a note saying how much she loved me. What a treasure. I am so blessed—and hope my own children know how much they are loved.

It's a field of rusted fabric!


Getting ready for Quilt Festival in Long Beach next week involves rusting lots of fabric for demos in the Earth Safe Finishes booth. I'll be demonstrating surface design with various ESF products on rust-dyed fabric for depth and complexity.

It's all about layers. I've studied examples of artists whose work I admire and have come to the conclusion that it's all about layers—layers that harmonize, layers that contrast, layers that compliment, layers that together make a statement.

So, between Quilt Festival and an order for Trusty Rusty Things product line, Lori and I have rusted about 40 yards of fabric in the past two days. The photo above shows less than half of the pieces. The other pieces are still "marinating" in their respective rust sources.

In a slightly different train of thought, we have puppies at the Poodle Ranch! Aren't they adorable? These little guys are about two days old in the photo. Coco, the Mom, wasn't thrilled I was so close to the pups, but she didn't bark until all the photos were finished.

It's amazing how small they are. Lori could hold all three of them in one hand for a photo op!

This is my buddy Chance. He was born early one morning on the farm of a friend. During these weeks of working on my mom's house I'd slip away and drive to the farm, affectionately known as The Poodle Ranch. It's only 20 minutes or so away, but driving into the country with the windows open and the breezes blowing through the car made it feel like the other side of the world.

Feeding the horses, playing with the dogs, and getting away refreshed me and helped me feel connected again.

The appraiser came to Mom's yesterday to evaluate the estate contents. It is a relief to reach that milestone. The next step is to get the house ready for DS Jake to move in. A little paint, a new window, cleaning the carpets and we'll be ready.

How many head of poodle are there? These are a few of the house dogs out for a run in the sun. They love to annoy the horses in the corral next to their play area. Way in the back of this photo is Emma (the red head). She is not a poodle, but a miniature pincer. She was hit by a car and is recovering from multiple injuries, including a broken front right leg and an amputated back left leg. She will return home after recuperating at the Poodle Ranch.

Needle-felted jewelry

This is the first of several photos of needle-felted jewelry. This neck piece is perfect for me right now. With so much stress after my mom's passing, the lightweight necklace doesn't weight my shoulders down and cause muscle spasms—and the colors are yummy!

The base is green felt with a bit of yellow/rust/green hand-dyed silk hankie felted on top. There are a few beads (of course) added by hand and the back is finished with Ultrasuede. The silver part is 16-gauge silver wire that's been flattened on a tiny jewelry anvil with a chasing hammer.

This is a bonus exercise for the Extreme Needle Felting class I teach at Quilters Keep Learning http://www.quilterskeeplearning.com

Another photo tomorrow!

Don't pay the ransom!

No I haven't fallen off the face of the earth, honest! I had no idea there was so much to do for someone's estate.

Fortunately, Mom was really organized with her finances. Too bad she wasn't equally organized in her house! It's taking weeks to sort through her personal items to get ready for the appraiser. We're making headway, but it's really slow going.

I've been teaching needle-felting classes between trips to Mom's house and the women's shelter in town. The classes are really fun! I'll post photos of some jewelry pieces tomorrow.

If a funeral can be beautiful, this one was! There was sunshine, laughter, tears, music, balloons, and food. Sounds like a party, doesn't it? It was truly a celebration of a long and full life well lived.

Mom's favorite color was pink, so it was easy to choose flowers: dark pink roses, light pink roses, pink Gerbera daisies, pink lilies, pink stock, white stock, and lots of baby's breath. There will probably be plenty of Threadography pieces from photos of her flowers. LOL!



This is a photo of the "22 balloon salute" at the cemetery. There were suppose to be 24 balloons, but two broke in transit.

She would have loved the whole affair! The hearse took a wrong turn in the cemetery and we all had to circle around again to get to the grave site.

She was very organized and has made administering her small estate quite painless. Going through her house is another matter! Like many lifelong crafters, she was a packrat. Throw away 4" of ribbon left from the bolt? No way! You never know when you'll need plastic butter tubs, or strawberry boxes, or snippets of fabric scraps, or the tiny dab of glue left in the tube. Sigh! What a job.

Two bits of business: Don't forget to send the greeting card for Clotilde. Because of my mom's passing, the deadline has been extended to the end of June. Please let me know if you'd like to send a card for her and I'll give you my snail-mail address.

Also, e-mails have gone out to those who indicated they'd like to be part of the ESF Print Test Team AND who gave me their e-mail addresses. Although more than 70 people signed up, fewer than 50 gave me e-mail addresses. If you would like to be part of the team, there are still a few openings. Please leave a comment here, including your e-mail address!

I ordered flowers for the casket spray yesterday: dark pink roses, light pink Gerbera daisies, and lots of baby's breath. It should be beautiful.

The weather forecast for Friday has no mention of rain, thank goodness. Thank you to those who shared the balloon release idea for the grave site. They will be pink and white, of course! I'm hoping to get a photo of the balloons to share on the blog.

Several online friends have mentioned how difficult it is to hear the words in the Charlotte Church piece. So, here they are:

From my first moment you gave me wings
Let me fly and believed in my dreams
From that first moment you cherished me so
The journey through life would be hard with out you
You gave me all I have and all I know

From my first moment you would be there
In your arms lay the strength I now bear
From that first moment each day I have you
As seasons they change but your heart stays the same
You gave me all I have and all I know


From my first moment as time goes by
We drift endlessly through open skies
The journey though life would be hard with out you
You gave me all I have and all I know