A Twilight Convert

I realize there's been a lot of craziness about Twilight this past year. I first heard about Twilight from blogging pal Shannon at FrecklesQuilts--she's a huge fan! So I bought the book--me and 40 million other people! I read a page or two and got busy. I passed it on to my daughters and they both read it and later bought the rest of the books in the Twilight series. They were hooked. I kept telling myself I'd get to reading that book when quilting slowed down a bit. Needless to say, it hasn't slowed down. The book has been sitting on a shelf, now collecting dust.

Last night Daughter #2 took me to finally see Twilight-The Movie. We even went to the dollar-theater. After all, it will be out on DVD soon, won't it? It was Daughter #2's second time seeing the movie.

I was surprised to see the theater packed! Typical nights at the dollar-theater have many empty seats. And the majority of the viewers last night were young girls. The first time the character Edward appeared on the screen, the young girls in the theater squealed and clapped. I looked around and laughed and said to Daughter #2, "Oh my, what's this all about?"

Ok, so now I'm hooked! I enjoyed the film very much. I was the only one making comments throughout. Everyone else was glued to the screen. I would ask my daughter, now who's that guy? and why did that happen? etc. Yes, I'm one of those annoying viewers! You know the kind. You've probably turned around and said "Shhhhh!" to me in the theater. Daughter #2 told me "Shhhhh!" and said, "You have to read the book Mom, then you'll understand everything."

Am I a converted "Twilighter"???

Maybe so. I'm just a newbie, though. Of course, I dusted off my copy of the book this morning and started reading it again. I'll let you know how it goes. I can't wait for the DVD release! (Where has Robert Pattinson been? Those eyes! My goodness!)

Now, back to work, Vivian!

(How can Vivian get back to work, when she'd rather read all about Edward Cullen....Except for the whole vampire thing...does a man like that even exist!!!?)

Treasures

Last week a lady at church asked, "Hey Vivian, you quilt, don't you?" I answered, "Sure." I thought she was going to ask me to make her a quilt. Then she said she'd been given a bunch of quilt books from a lady she knew and wondered if I would like them. She didn't know the owner of the books personally. They were given to her from a friend of friend and they've been sitting in her garage collecting dust. The other night she brought them by.

Let me share these treasures with you...

It looks as if the owner of these books, magazines, and patterns was a quilter in the 70's and 80's. She was very organized with her templates and directions.
I reminisced about the days I learned to quilt in the 80's. I looked at this woman's notes and recalled learning the same things many years ago. (I started quilting in 1983...which means I've been quilting since I was a baby?...LOL!) One of her quilting books was from 1972. Check this cool girl out! Groovy trapunto pantsuit!
And don't you just love this guy's vest below? Can you dig it?

Check out this far out ad for Mountain Mist batting! Don't you love this girls funky outfit? Actually the yellow shoes kinda scare me!

Now below is the nicest book in her collection. It's a big coffee-table-sized book called "The Art Quilt." I drooled over the pictures in this book!Here's a page for you to enjoy:I'm sure the stack of books that was given to me was only a treasure to me! ...and any other quilters who can appreciate them! Others might consider them trash.

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And here's a little treasure I worked on the other day for The Calico House . They had it on display at their booth at Road to California. Lovely Lakehouse DryGoods fabrics! Closer detail of my quilting. I hope they sold lots of kits of this little treasure at the show!

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And one more treasure...

The other day I found this picture of my girls. They are about 7 and 4. In the background you see my hubby and my brother-in-law. He's a farmer in Idaho. This was our family's first experience riding in a combine. We are such city-folk compared to our relatives in Idaho! We loved the adventure of it! Look at how beautiful the sky is! Look at how little my girls are! This is definitely another one of the those things that is a treasure only to me. A sweet memory.

A Good Read

I get up every morning at 4:30am. I shower, dress, eat breakfast, then go over to my church building to teach 16 high school freshmen about the New Testament at 5:55am. I must admit, changing my life to an early morning schedule like this has been a hard adjustment. I try to go to bed earlier, but that's not always easy. (I wonder how Martha Stewart survives on very little sleep!) To make this change in my life has been so worth it, though. I am learning more than my students, I'm sure! My students are great. I'm not saying they are angels everyday, but they are great.

Let me share with you something I did in our class one morning. We were studying the story of the Rich, Young Ruler in Matthew, chapter 19, verse 16-26.A friend told me that the book "The Quiltmaker's Gift" is essentially that same story. From the inside cover: "This charming fable for our times celebrates the joy of giving. A generous quiltmaker, with magic in her fingers, sews the most beautiful quilts in the world, then gives them away. A greedy king, his storehouse stuffed with treasures, yearns for something that will make him happy...Will the quiltmaker sew a quilt for the king? Will the king ever learn to share?"

So one morning, after first reading the story of The Rich, Young Ruler from the Bible, I sat my sixteen freshmen on the floor around me and told them I was going to read them another story. They looked at me like I was crazy. One young man said, "What's this? Preschool?" I said, "No, but just sit and listen."
So, they did. It was one of the best lessons we've had! The students sat quietly and listened to the story. They understood it and it was a great parallel to the story in the Bible.

Have you ever read "The Quiltmaker's Gift?" If not, go read it today! Have you ever read the story of The Rich, Young Ruler from the Bible? If not, go read that one today too! They are both a "good read."

And speaking of another good read...

I received my copy of Anna Maria Horner's new book "Seams To Me." Beautiful photography, beautiful projects. Great instructions and patterns. Check it out!I ordered my copy from her website and she signed it! Yippee! I remember when I had the opportunity to machine quilt a quilt for her. Read about it here: Anna Maria's Quilt.

Next, a lovely quilt to share...

Made from Moda charm packs:

Check out the back. It was fun to quilt!

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Here's a request: Do you know of any other good children's books, based on quilting? If so, leave a comment for me and share some of your favorites with me!

Gadgets, Gizmos, and Inspiration

I thought I'd share some of my favorite gadgets. Some are actual sewing notions, but others are just things I use. I may not be using them for the purpose they were originally created but, oh well!

The first is a "Viewtainer." I got it at Home Depot and I use it to unwind bobbins. I put a couple inside and pull on the strings through the lid and they don't go flying across the room as I'm rewinding--that's what used to happen!
The next is a King Tut thread spool. This is what a spool looks like full of thread.
Below is an empty one. I stuck it into the handles of my Gammill longarm quilting machine and it's now a place to put my thread scissors.
Below is a gadget I purchased a few weeks ago from Cranberry Quiltworks. It's the new Grip-Lite side clamp. I love it! I've been using mine for a couple of weeks now. They are lightweight and yet hold very well. I especially like the double-sided velcro straps.
Now, for inspiration, I look at these books now and then. Here are just a few I love to look at and say "oooh, ahhh!" Believe me! I have shelves and shelves of quilting books!

From the bottom:

Karen McTavish's "Mastering the Art of McTavishing." (I never did really master the art of McTavishing...I do the ol' Vivian-Love-is-just-wingin-it technique!)

Next there is Sharon Schamber's "Piece by Piece." (she is awesome! I met her last year and wrote an article about it for Quilter's Buzz...check it out here: QuiltersBuzz: MQS)

Christine Maraccini's "Machine Quilting Solutions". (recommended to me by a fellow longarm quilter.)

Linda V. Taylor's "Ultimate Guide to Longarm Machine Quilting." (practically everything you'd ever need to know about longarm quilting! ...mine's an autographed copy...does that make it more valuable?)

Sally Terry's "Pathway's to Better Quilting." (I finally figured out how to do the 'Terry Twist')

Harriet Hargrave's "Heirloom Machine Quilting." (my copy was printed in 1990...which means I've been drooling over these pictures for 18 years!)

Rodale's "Choosing Quilting Designs." (This book helped me do just that...choose quilting designs!)

Pam Clarke's "Designs With Lines" workbook. (I took Pam's class in 2002 and it changed my life! I'm not kidding! She was the one that got me hooked on freemotion quilting! Awesome teacher!)

Quilter's Newsletter Magazine "March 1997" (I put that on top of the pile because I'm in that issue. That's when I was strictly a hand quilter. In fact I was anti-machine quilting! Can you believe how things have changed since 1997? Even Vivian Love has changed!)

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Now to borrow a quote from Monty Python's Flying Circus:
And now for something completely different....

Check out these last two quilts I worked on. They are quite different. I love them!

Don't you love this butterfly? I don't think I've ever seen a quilt like this one. I used Signature Variegated thread: "Purple Haze", in my bobbin. And did I think of the 1966 Jimi Hendrick's song, Purple Haze, as I quilted? You know it! Check out the butterfly on the back!
Here's another one that is quite different...

I stitched some freehand flowers and swirls throughout.
Well, blogging friends...

This is my 200th post. Can you believe it? So I'm going to be taking a little break. Check back in about a week for a fun 200th post give-away. The Purse Dog is so excited for it!

Yesterday my husband and the BabyBoy left on a....

...you guessed it! A jet plane!

They are off to Peru for high adventure and humanitarian service. So, what will Vivian do? Make a quick trip up to Utah to visit Daughter #1 for the weekend. I wonder if she has a cow on her roof too, like these folks.

I did ask if I needed to wear my pioneer bonnet when I visit her little town!

Now, to finish another quilt and clean up my house! I don't want the housesitter to think I'm a pig!

Good Beginnings

Good Beginning No. 1:

Ok, so my "two-a-days" plan has gone out the window! At least, for now. The quilts I've worked on recently have been huge. It's kinda like one-every-two-days. That's not at all what I planned! But I keep moving forward. Here's one I began today. This is the border:

I chose a gold thread to do first. That is the predominant color. Everywhere else I pin-basted.

I use large coursage pins for pin-basting. I don't think you can ever have too many coursage pins! As I said this is the beginning of this quilt. Check back tomorrow to see the finished product.

Good Beginning No. 2:

My BabyBoy and his dad got their shots this week. You see, they are going to Peru next month. Yes, that's right, Peru! They will be there for 10 days on a humanitarian trip. They will also be able to some sightseeing in Cusco and Machu Picchu. You see, my husband served a mission there many years ago and this is the first chance he's had to return. He's taking my BabyBoy because he loves adventure. He loves roughing it. Is this where it all began? Below you see my BabyBoy going camping when he was young. The fathers and sons in my church go on outings every year together. This was one of the first ones they went on. My husband and BabyBoy always went early so they could pick the best campsite:
First it's a father and sons campout, next it's Machu Picchu?
I'm happy to report that my BabyBoy's arms are not as sore today as on the first day. He got four shots--two in each arm! Poor thing!

Good Beginning No 3:

Here's another story I must share with you from our recent church youth trip to Utah. The handsome young man pictured below is awesome. And I'm not just saying that because he is my BabyBoy! Let me tell you why:
Was this where it all began? My BabyBoy grew up with a loving, compassionate heart for those with physical disabilities. At an early age he would help his grandmother, my mother-in-law, who suffered from the debilitating effects of M.S. She was in a wheelchair all the years that by BabyBoy knew her. Ever since then he has had a kind heart for those with physical challenges. As I have shared before, our church youth group hiked up to Ensign Peak in Salt Lake City. One of the young men in our group is wheelchair bound. He figured he couldn't make the hike as it not wheelchair accessible. In fact, the path up is all dirt and quite narrow. It is quite a climb! Well, in order for this young man to make it up, my son and some other strong young men, offered to carry him and his wheelchair up to Ensign Peak.
This was quite a task! The boys took turns carrying him up along the rough terrain. You can see them in the picture below. As the group of young men (and even a few young women too!) came up to the top of the peak, everyone cheered! I could hardly cheer because I was so emotional. My eyes were full of tears and I could barely even take these photos. It was an unforgettable sight. There were probably about 150 teens up there cheering at this sight:
Below you see the team as they are coming down off the peak. It was a great experience for all. I have wondered why my BabyBoy has such a kind heart for the physically disabled. I know it is because good beginning, helping his dear grandmother.

Good Beginning No. 4 (the last one):

While on my trip I took 3 books with me. This is the one I have been enjoying most. "Notes on a Life" by Eleanor Coppola:I am reading it slowly and enjoying every bit of it. Now because I'm reading it slowly, I'm still only at the beginning. It's like a delicious dessert that you want to eat slowly, savoring each and every bite. I love the way Eleanor Coppola writes. I feel like I know her. I'd love to go to lunch with her. I wish she were my friend. If anyone who reads my blog knows her, tell her to give me a call. I higly recommend her book!

My Bags Are Packed, I'm Ready To Go

At 5:30am tomorrow I'll be taking off to go Utah for six "fun-filled" days with 200 teenagers. My husband is one of the leaders and asked me to come along to be the official historian. He knows I love to write and having been a former journalism major, (changed my major when I found out I could make more money as a bean-counter!), I said "Yes." I'm also the official photographer...he knows I love to be the paparazzi! I'm going to be busy writin' and shootin' photos all at once. Well, I'm up for the task! (Pictured above: a pioneer couple with their pioneer "Purse Dog.")

I got these 2 Halloween quilts done yesterday and today. The first one is made up of your more traditional Halloween colors.

These photos are not the best, but you can see the center is a printed panel and I just embellished it.

The second one is a Halloween quilt made up of some not-so-typical Halloween colors. Isn't this cute?

Fun to quilt too!

Check out the spiderweb I put in the pinwheel blocks!

For my trip, what's in the bookbag?

I made a quick trip over to Borders and picked up books recommended by fellow bloggers...Shannon wrote about "Twilight" by Stephenie Meyer, Dee wrote about "Notes on a Life" by Eleanor Coppola, and my friend Shana recommended "The Kite Runner" by K. Hosseini (which I started and never finished.) I'm looking forward to doing a little reading, hopefully I'll have some time!

Until next week...Adios, my blogging friends!