Make It... a Wonderful Life

A Few Friends...

2016-03-26T23:59:00.002-07:00

Happy Easter!

Nature is a Painter

2016-03-22T09:21:00.000-07:00

I found this leaf, just as it is. I treasure the details all around us.

Christmas Cactus in the New Year

2016-01-03T09:36:00.002-08:00

I've had this plant for at least 25 years... it usually blooms in October. This year, it waited till December. Have a wonderful day!

Morning Light

2015-12-27T00:00:00.000-08:00

Have a wonderful day.

Merry/Happy

2015-12-23T08:38:00.001-08:00

Wool collage, 2015. Thrifted (Value Village) wool, bracelet beads, and charms. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to everyone!

Savory Cornbread Stuffing Cakes withCranberry Sauce Syrup

2015-12-22T01:21:00.000-08:00

My sister and I got together early for Christmas this year so that meant a pre-Christmas meal including one of one of our favorites, cornbread dressing. Our Nana made the best. (I keep trying...) With some leftovers, a remake was in order. And Chobani invited me to include yogurt in my recipe. This is a bit like a potato pancake, but cornbread dressing takes center stage. And no potatoes.

A Spider's Work is Never Done

2015-10-04T00:00:00.000-07:00

Have a wonderful day.

Wild Horses and a Quilt

2015-10-02T00:00:00.000-07:00

Not a new quilt, but one I love. Made a couple of years ago. And horses. These are some of the 13 wild horses that were rescued and that are looking for a new home. Some friends have loaned their land as a temporary haven. (Moses, the standard poodle, checking out the quilt) The quilt was made from leftover green bits, sewn log cabin style and then squared and framed with

Scrappy Works for Me

2015-09-30T00:00:00.000-07:00

We finished a few quilts one morning for Project Linus. This was my favorite. I love scrappy randomness that has a bit of order to it. Just like life. Make it a Wonderful Life!

Independence Day Dresden Plates

2015-07-04T13:11:00.002-07:00

Happy Independence Day! Here are a few dresden plates I've made for American Hero Quilts. (Surprisingly easy to make!) We're making red, white, and blue blocks every month and we'll have a sew day to put the quilts together sometime in the fall or winter. Our quilt group continues to support the efforts of American Hero Quilts to give quilts to injured service men and women. I

Oh My Cherry Pie

2015-07-02T16:22:00.000-07:00

(We couldn't wait for the pie to cool!) Fresh cherry pie is right up there at the top of my favorites list. Along with most fresh fruit pies. Especially blueberry. Or deep dish, single crust peach. Ah, summer fruit. We picked cherries from a very old, very tall tree... which meant we wished we had taller ladders. We cleaned out the lowest branches but I'm sure the birds are happy that

Art Teacher Still Life (Clean Up Beauty)

2015-05-08T11:06:00.000-07:00

I guess I see beauty in most things. Even clean up. We spend time at the end of Art Club with everyone helping clean up, but I do a second round at home with brushes and supplies that might be wrecked if not cleaned completely. (Let's just say a first-grader's idea of clean might not be the same as mine…) These are some thrifted cookie cutters (Value Village) we used to add

Oil Pastel Vases, Bowls, and Bottles

2015-04-14T12:18:00.002-07:00

We're nearing the end of Art Club for the year, and I'm way behind on posting their beautiful work. We did a guided practice drawing together, starting with drawing a cylinder and then shaping it into an imagined vase, bottle, or bowl. Vibrant oil pastels were blended with a brush and turpenoid to create a painterly result on our final paper.

Bedouin Textiles

2015-04-06T00:00:00.000-07:00

We enjoyed another exhibit at the San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles. I'm always impressed with beautiful objects that also serve practical purposes. In this case, Bedouin nomadic tents, rugs, cushions, clothing, along with camel ornamentation and saddlebags. The show is just a small portion of the collection amassed by Joy and Robert Hilden. The pieces on

Easter Table is Set...

2015-04-04T17:50:00.000-07:00

The table is set for tomorrow's family Easter Brunch. Now it's time to get cooking... Happy Easter!

Kawandi Adventure: Quilts by Margaret Fabrizio

2015-04-03T09:35:00.000-07:00

We visited this show of beautiful quilts at the San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles. All so beautiful! And then something really fun happened- as we drove away from the museum, I saw a woman dressed in an artful way, and I recognized her from a short video of Margaret that was included in her show. I had Dave stop the car so I

March Quilt Group Friday

2015-03-27T16:55:00.001-07:00

A couple of old gals came to our quilt group today. (I can't believe I used the word "gals"….) These were made for Helen by her mom a long time ago. Helen's been going through things and came across them, packed away and missing their outfits. I loved their sweet faces. Helen's going to make them some new cloths, probably Kaffe brights. Helen also brought a

DIY "Chocolate" Bunny and an Easter Quilt

2015-03-26T19:38:00.000-07:00

This is a zero-calorie "chocolate" bunny. It looks good enough to eat, but it's a thrifted figurine painted to look delicious. This is how he started out- gray with a white tail. I saw his chocolate potential though. I gave him a quick coat of gesso, and then a couple of layers of chocolate brown acrylic craft paint that I had on hand. He's finished with a coat of matte-finish Mod

Textures by the Bay

2015-03-22T00:00:00.000-07:00

Have a Wonderful Day.

Quilt Group Friday/February

2015-03-16T00:00:00.000-07:00

So I'm waaaaay behind on posting pictures from my monthly quilt group. I did miss a few meetings due to travel. But I 'm going to start catching up by posting a few from last month's get together. Here is Helen's brights with gray- perfect for our gray Pacific Northwest . She brought the perfect fabric she found for the backing. Our project this year was to bring blocks

Bay Area Blues

2015-03-15T00:00:00.000-07:00

Have a Wonderful Day!