Happy Zombie

I’m full of secrets and up to all sorts of juicy stuff. At least it’s juicy to me, ha. So if you’re thinking I had a secret rendezvous with George Clooney, um… ok, please continue to think that (just don’t tell Jon Stewart, k).

So many secret projects I’m working on. Some are for me, some are for a certain someone’s next book (and you KNOW I’m going to be gushing out-loud when her book hits the market, oh yeah). I feel like I’ve neglected my blog for so long (I love you blog honey, really, I do). I actually have so much blog-food, but have not had the time to feed it. As well, my blog needs a bib when fed. Oi’vay… such a mess it makes.

Aside from me feeding the blog, I’ve had little time to be fed by all your blogs. Unfortunately… I haven’t lost a pound. Chubby is in, right? I feel like there’s a party going on in the next building over, and I’m in the basement of my building… with no windows… a single blinking fluorescent bulb… and the occasional Cheez-it’s for nourishment. Not complaining in the least about my projects, I’m feeling so blessed about em. BUT… I do miss all that blog action from you guys! A beautiful book has been published, hints of gianormous cottonlike proportions, aprons have been accepted to be published! I’m crazy happy thrilled!

My Secret Project #1 is being made with the Urban Chicks Blossom line from Moda. OMG… this fabric is so stinkin’ yummy I could eat it. I don’t know if it’s out in the stores yet. If it is… snag it up quick because I think it’s gonna go fast. I really wanted to capture this delicious fabric in pixels, but I sorely lack in the photography department. I wish I could capture it like the Purl Bee does. OMG… Purl’s stack-o-fabric photos are works of art. Quilter’s porn. Yup… those photos are the blond chick with big boobs donned in leather knee high boots of the fabric world. So anyhoo… this is how I live. No neat and tidy opening of a box, no perfect lighting, no neat little stacks. This is my world. A ripped open box and its contents piled on to the table.

Secret Project #2 is all finished and ready for the post office. I wish I could show more, but in time it will be seen. ;o) The fabrics I used are from Lisa Quan’s and Joanna Figueroa’s Fig Tree Quilts Allspice Tapestry by Moda. Another fabric that is so yummy I could eat it! Seriously, seriously yummy. It’s hearty and soft at the same time.

And that is my current episode of Knotts Landing! If you’re in the Pacific Northwest region in a few weeks… my dear friend Cindy will be visiting and we’re planning a quiltycraftyblogapalooza luncheon at McMenamin’s Kennedy School in Portland. Hope you can make it and go to Cindy’s blog and comment your rizavip!

I’m always saying, “I’m gonna write a letter” - and nine times out of ten I fail to do so. Maybe I just need a short cut! So here I go…

1. Dear People of the City of Portland,
Every time we come visit you it’s a treat. You are so friendly and so kind and always make us feel welcome. You always put that extra foot forward to be kind and helpful. You’re always colorful and exciting. Thank you!

2. Dear HBO,
Thank you for a second season of Big Love!

3. Dear T. Paul’s Urban Cafe in Astoria,
Thank you for serving the finest food (and atmosphere) ever and for always remembering who we are when we come, (and that we have our ice-tea with no sugar on the rim).

4. Dear Shampoo manufacturers,
Can you please tone it down a bit on the scented products? If I want blueberry citrus kiwi peach vanilla milk n honey blast on my hair… I’ll just go to Jamba Juice and pour a smoothie over my head.

5. Dear IKEA Portland,

Open!

Open!

Open!

6. Dear former Portland mayor Vera Katz,
Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! (see #5)

7. Dear Scientists,
I’d like to be cloned please. One of me that just blog surfs and sews all day, and another one of me that cooks dinner, works, cleans, pulls weeds and does laundry.

8. Dear Merry Maids,
Since I can’t have #7, do you take on charity cases?

9. Dear ODOT, WSDOT and Caltrans,
Your orange vests and cones really do the trick and I can spot you quickly and easily… but I do think you need some jazzing up. How ’bout some nice pink and green to go with the orange? Or aqua? Safety does not mean having to being unfashionable.

10. Dear clock,
Must you always move your arms so fast?

11. Dear Quilty & Crafty bloggy friends,
You are the nicest, warmest, friendliest, giving and inspirational women ever! Thank you for letting me be a part of your lives, and thank you for being a part of my life!

And last but not least…

12. Dear John,
Will you PLEASE teach Mochi and York how to use you? The whole litter box thing is so gross. And while you’re at it John… can you please teach them how to flush as well?

With an Easy Angle and Companion Angle you really can seem to make the Jelly Rolls grow. There are so many great patterns and ideas for Jelly Rolls, and here is a way to make your 2½” strip width “grow” to make a 2⅞” half-square and a 5¼” quarter-square.

Easy Angle: For a 2⅞” square, cut a 2½” x 3¼” rectangle and use the Easy Angle and cut into two half-square triangles.

Your final result:

Companion Angle: For a 5¼” square, cut a 2½” x 13½” rectangle and cut into four “quarter-square” triangles. Discard the ends - or save them for another project.

Your final result:

An extra added bonus is half of your dog-ears are magically trimmed. I use the rulers for dog-ear trimming on other projects too. I also find it hard to cut into a piece of fabric to make say a 5¼” square when I have plenty of 2½” strips or I only have a 2½” strip. Using the Companion Angle I can avoid cutting a big square. I love these rulers and think if you’re someone who’s addicted to Jelly Rolls (and who isn’t!), these two tools will add big bang to your jelly roll bucks.

I was tagged by Pam and Missy with a fun to-do list. Eight or so days between posts, and today I have two. I should put continuity on my fantasy to-do list.

1. Return George Clooney’s phone calls. O-kay, ok… we’ll do lunch. Happy now?

2. Refresh the housekeeper of all her daily duties and chores.

3. Send Oprah a thank you note for the nice weekend visit at her Santa Barbara house.

4. Talk to Barbara about me filling the empty seat and promise not to yell or fight.

5. Send email reply to Moda. Why yes… I can make room for a bolt of everything.

6. Pack for trip to Australia, New Zealand, Paris, London, Germany and Barcelona.

7. Wake up.

Now it’s my turn to tag! Moooo ahhh haaa haaaaa! Seven items, seven tags. Miss Mouse, Raesha, Darlene, Michelle, Angela, Kim and Deanna… tag - you’re it!

His & Hers… or what’s better known at our house - what’s yours is mine, what’s mine is mine. Ok, not really. But since I’m the Director of Operations (aka Hazel) I get to call it all mine. Right? Right!

Because everything at our house is a constant WIP, DH decided to start a new WIP. He and I are really not so different. He has his tools, I have mine. He has his fibre, I have mine. He has his stash, I have mine. He has his WIP’s, I have mine. I have my WIP’s shoved gently stored in a cupboard and out of sight… he has his WIP’s for all to see (read: me).

Last weekend was another busy day in the yard on the landscaping WIP (still a WIP btw), and DH starts digging a notch into the hillside off the back deck. DH got the bee up his butt to start his fantasy outdoor kitchen. Being that it was our 17th anniversary and I was feeling a bit lightheaded (apparently), I whispered those five little words every man fantasizes hearing his wife say… “Want to go to Lowe’s?”.

My suggestion was to go the following morning, but the sparkle in DH’s eyes told me otherwise. I guess it’s like The Little Blue Pill…. once you take it you have to use it right away. So we dropped everything and headed to Lowe’s. Friday night, 8pm and an hour’s drive to Lowe’s. SURE… why not! And to top it off… dinner at 11pm at Jack in the Box (and my JITB two taco fix). Happy Anniversary darling! DH did his thing - he calls it loading the truck.  DS and I do our thing - we call it an opportunity to goof off. In my case it’s a blogotunity, in DS’s case it’s a myspaceotunity. The apple does not fall far from the tree!

I’ve been tagged by Cindy, Tiff and That Silly Lil’ Doe with a 7 random facts about me. I like so much the way Pam did hers, and then Elizabeth did hers… I’m going to carry on the idea! I’m not sure if it’s supposed to be random facts or weird random facts… either way, I’m weird and this is the short list.

1) I’m easily amused. Simple pleasures for simple minds??? I listen to Adam Carolla’s radio show in the mornings. In my house in OREGON, for best reception I listen to his show on the Seattle station. In the car, when I cross the river into WASHINGTON, for best reception I listen to his show on the Portland station. This amuses me to no end. I know I can listen online at home, but how amusing is that?

2) I love going to the dentist to have my teeth cleaned. It’s a Spa Day for my teeth. And when the hygienist reclines the chair back and my feet are higher then my head… PRESTO - instant tummy tuck for 30 glorious minutes!

3) I love the rain and stormy weather. Too much sunshine and I get reverse-SAD. I love sunshine for gardening, eating outside, outdoor quilt shows, picnics, campfires and camping… but I also need a good balance of cozy rain.

4) I love riding on a school bus. The bumpier the road the better. Hills and valleys… euphoria.

5) I can’t sit still. Even writing this post I think I’ve gotten up like eight times. I also need to keep my hands busy when I watch TV. If I didn’t quilt or do redwork, I couldn’t just sit there and watch (sans Lost… I totally focus on that). It’s why I think I don’t like going to movie theaters… because I can’t do handwork there (hey, you in the back… turn off the @#$%! Ottlite).

6) I hate going grocery shopping. BUT… once I’m there I linger. I read labels, smell shampoos, spend 10 minutes picking the best mushrooms, spend 15 minutes searching for the forgotten item I needed most (and still not find it only to remember what it was the minute I pull into my driveway).

7) I have favorite parking spaces at various establishments. When I find one of “my spots” open it’s like I won the lottery. Another example of #1.

I realize no one is reading my words as I’m sure you’re all under the influence of this yummy fabric and are currently in a cotton coma. I can almost hear, “get to the part about the fabric!”. This glorious stash of 30’s fabric belongs to my sister-friend Karen. You know you want it… I DO! I’m trying to catch up, so a lot more trips here are in order! I mentioned in an earlier post about the fun time we had folding these fabrics and that it was from Karen that I learned the cool folding method by Lois Hallock that changed my life. Lois’ book Creating Your Perfect Quilting Space is a MUST HAVE BOOK for anyone who creates with fabric. I BET there’s not a fabric lover out there who wouldn’t have been thrilled to help fold this! It truly was a privilege (and I’m tempted to sneak in and mess it up so we can do it again).

This is Karen’s new studio (I call it Casa de Washtub) and it’s a paradise! Heaven on earth. Karen and her studio are profiled in the Spring 2007 issue of Designers’ Quarters magazine. Don a bib… you’ll be drooling!

I’m lucky to be surround by such great women in my life. Amazing. Talented. Giving. Inspiring.

A huge shout-out and whoooooooo - whoooo goes to my wonder twin Pam! Yeah, see that quilt… the quilt of a million pieces of fabric expertly sewn into a beautiful quilt? Click on the image to see a larger photo. Yup… that’s our Pam who made that quilt for Alex’s newest book. Alex you know, doesn’t just ask ANYONE to make a quilt! When you want the best, you want PamKittyMorning! I’m so proud of you Pam!!!! I bow before thee oh Great One.

And speaking of Pam… when Pam and Elizabeth went to Market (you HAVE to go to their blogs to go on “a tour of Spring Market” to read and see all about it!), Pam brought me home a little goodie. Ok, not little… it was a really big deal to me… Pam got for me the latest book by Darlene Zimmerman AND had Darlene sign it. HOW SWEET to be thinking of me (while I was home scrubbing the floors while all my friends were at the ball in Salt Lake City)!

QUILTING - THE COMPLETE GUIDE  by Darlene Zimmerman is a book that should be on every quilters bookshelf! From beginner to expert… it’s a must have! Nicely spiral bound for easy reading and following along. Beautifully worded and beautiful illustrations by Darlene’s daughter Rachel. Aside from the fact that it’s packed with helpful info and tutorials… it’s so darn cute!

My talented and dear friend Robin made these ADORABLE 4-patches for Mimi and I can’t wait to make them into a small doll quilt (and then put it in Calamity Kim’s new Doll Quilt CrAzY flickr pool). Or will it be Mimi who makes it? All are vintage fabrics and sewn into tiny little 2” four-patches. I was giddy with joy when Robin gave them to me. Robin, who is blogless (and shouldn’t be) is a fabulous quilter and one of the sweetest kindest people I know. Chances are if you’ve learned to quilt or hand quilt and live in SW Washington or NW Oregon… Robin has taught you!

A pioneer of women in business and designing is Ruby Short McKim. Ruby truly blazed the trail for women in publishing and design. She’s worth reading about if you’re unfamiliar with her. I think Ruby’s biggest fan is my dear friend Melinda. Melinda not only made me this darling celery crisper, but I think she made close to 30 more of these! Melinda just finished her term as our guild president (she was awesome) and she thanked so many members with a darling celery or lettuce crisper she made us from a vintage Ruby McKim pattern. Can you imagine! I’d be pooped after making just one (and formulating a new plan to make something faster). WOW and how BEAUTIFUL!

I don’t have a photo, but if you have a copy of The Mag in your hot little hands, you can see the stunning and beautiful machine quilting my dear sister-friend Karen did on my cherry quilt (and you can also see in the issue on the Make Your Point quilt pattern that Karen is offering a kit for sale - how cool to share pages with her!). I don’t know how she does it. Designing new fabric, writing books, running a successful quilt shop (as seen in BH&G’s Quilt Sampler Fall 2006 edition), volunteering, teaching classes, cook her Bob dinner, traveling (I’m exhausted just thinking about her busy life)… she has time to do something so nice and so beautiful for me.

Amazing women!

Seriously… I received a sign! Not from God, not from the universe… but from Deanna of Domestic Chicky and The Apronista. This is so cool what she did for me and I had to learn more!

This looks so real! I thought FOR SURE Deanna had one of those long poles with the suction cup thingy at the end and on that busy street putting up the letters. And I’m no less thrilled to find out she did this from the comfort of her keyboard!

Do you have time to kill? Looking for a good time (that’s so PA Bob)? Do you have a zillion things to do that you’d like to put off so you can play? Check out RedKid.net! Thank you Deanna!

Things are really hopping at my house, and it’s really cutting into my blog-time! Ok, it’s all good, but my bloglines is lit up like a Festivas Tree and I’m itching to catch up with everyone’s blogs! DS has taken it upon himself to re-landscape our back yard, which is no easy task since we live on a hillside. DH and I have jumped on the band-waggon (though I’m working in a not so treacherous area of the yard, ie., with the potted plants and keeping the work crew happy with pancakes and pizza). Outside and in the sunshine non-rainy weather we’ve been having… make for glorious family time! My bloggy fun time and quilting/sewing have been neglected, as well as cooking, cleaning and the laundry (the latter not too unusual). And speaking of neglected… I’m learning fast I need to keep a closer eye on PA Bob and Mimi!

And NOW I KNOW why PA Bob has that grin on his face!

It’s official… I’ve crapped my pants and my head’s exploded from mass expansion. My little cherry quilt made the cover!  Not to mention getting published by my favorite publisher isn’t cool enough as it is!