Autumn is Summer's Last Loviest Smile

Below are some shots that I took of my homage to Autumn in Tucson. Not much color outside - in fact it's just started to cool down during this past week. October is infamous here for starting out on the first at about 95 F and ending at around 50 F! Somewhere along the way we lose about 35 to 40 degrees. Kinda hard on the ole bod!

Happy Harvest to All

Harvest has come to my little corner of the house! This is the time I gather all the small wall hangings I've made over the years and display them in the entry. I love Mr. Pumpkin - a doll that is about 24" tall. He's a skinny pumpkin man and has wonderful boots. He's holding a little scarecrow made in 1995! What a fun display to have out during this time of the year. We don't get much color from the trees in Tucson, but I have a nice corner on the color right here in the house!

Wish You Were Here!

Earlier this summer, one of the local desert museums, Tohono Chul, invited fiber artists from all over the world to send them a fabric postcard depicting Arizona. Art4Mail, a yahoo group that I belong to, is well represented in this exhibit because two of us have our postcards displayed. Those who chose to, could put their cards up for sale and I decided that I should do that and give the proceeds back to the museum. Miriam, from Ireland is my Art4Mail partner here, who also offered her card for sale and if you'll notice, both our cards have blue dots near the description in the catalog. This means that they both sold for $25 each, so the museum gained a bit of profit from us! I might add that not all the cards have sold! This was a great way to show off our postcard art and also see what others have made as well.

September Stocking Day

September 29 was our second of three stocking sewing days at Grace Quilts. We had a banner crop this time! 150 stocking were nearly ready to head out the door by the end of the day - one had a boo boo; 15 went as homework and the 134 that remained were added to the inventory. Several of our ladies were on hand to help sew these gifts of love that will go to local foster kids and other kids who are identified as needy. Each year we have such a good time making these stockings and our yield is always over 1,000! Thanks to all who help this project come to reality!

Going Through Withdrawals

The season is officially over for my Diamondbacks. It was a terrible one, but at least they took the Cubbies 2 out of 3 over the weekend! (This from a former Cub's fan!) I don't know what I will do now for my entertainment in the evenings! I am just beginning to understand football, buy my heart belongs to baseball! Sure, the play-offs and the Series are just days away, but I will miss my team!

The Sunflower's Last Smile

Recently I joined the Summer Mini Quilt Swap at Quilting Gallery and found I was attracted to sunflowers. I saw a lovely pattern for a mini quilt online and wanted to interpret it according to me! This was my result. It's also posted on Flickr where it has received many nice compliments. I enjoyed working on it and I think the person to whom it was sent, enjoyed it as well.

Happy XXII to Katy

Today is Katy's 22nd Birthday. I know, I know, don't we all know that today is September 11th. Eight years ago, our nation was attacked by religious idiots with a deadly agenda. But, well before, back in 1987, it was Katy's birth date, and we will always celebrate her day on this day each year. Before she came downstairs this morning, I got busy and made a special corner for her near the coffee pot, so that when she loaded her travel mug, she couldn't miss it. Here are some of the photos. The first photo is actually the birthday girl herself and a gorgeous vase of flowers that her brother, Brian, sent along. What a nice surprise that was, since he's all the way back in upstate New York at Ft. Drum. Happy Special Day to a special daughter - actually she's my favorite daughter!

Yongosona Wuuti

We've just completed an ethnic themed doll swap at Art4Mail and I decided to make a pueblo storyteller. Storyteller dolls have been a favorite of mine since I discovered them once we had moved to Arizona. Since I have so many to study as I made mine, it wasn't too difficult to come up with a concept. The doll body was fairly straight forward; however the most difficult part was her hair. I wanted her to be a Hopi maiden with the butterfly whorl style at each ear. This is a beautiful style and I would love to see the real deal in person as I have only seen them in photos. I named this doll Yongosona Wuuti which in Hopi means Turtle Woman. Since the Hopi culture were originally nomadic people who followed the availability of good land for crops, they were continually on the move. The women. responsible for all things domestic, were expected to pack up the household belongings and carry them to where they would next dwell, hence her name. The children are Guatemalan worry dolls that have a culture and tradition all their own in that country. I did not want to stop and make all the dolls that would be needed for this storyteller, so I borrowed these darling little dolls that are made from sticks that are wrapped with colorful floss and have drawn features.

This doll became very precious to me and it was hard to send her off, but she went to Jan, who lives in Boulder City, NV, and who has strong ties to the Navajo Nation. This was one of the reasons I was so pleased to send her off.

My research shows one of the first modern Storyteller dolls was made in the 1960's by a Pueblo woman in New Mexico, honoring her grandfather who was a storyteller. These dolls are always depicted with open mouths because they sung their heritage and history. They also have the eyes closed. Turtle Woman is a real treasure. If you look closely at the photo, over her left shoulder is a glimpse of another storyteller doll that was used as background for the photo.

Sunflowers

We've just finished another fun swap at Art4Mail. The theme is sunflowers. They are so beautiful with their majestic size towering over the gardens. Mine was inspired by my friend, Linda, who is helping another friend with a monthly project. Since we had both featured sunflowers, I 'borrowed' her idea of the sidebar patchwork. We are encouraged to have back art as well, so I found Debbie Mumm quilt labels in my stash and used them for the back. I added a couple of shrink art buttons that you may have to look for, but they added a nice touch as well. Another successful swap from A4M!