Australian Flower-Making Tools

I want to thank Allie for introducing me to these wonderful flower-making tools. Those of you who read CQMagOnline probably read her article in the latest issue. Just in case you didn't, here is the link.

After seeing the article I just had to have a set. They are pricey but my sweet husband insisted I order a set knowing how well I loved re-creating nature's beauty in silk.

I wish the photo showed the beautiful peach shades and the three different pieces of silk used in this flower. Vic dyed one of the fabrics and sent it home with me. I dyed the other two. I used her Ribbonsmyth dyes. We experimented with her set of tools but needed more time than what we had.

I set aside several hours yesterday to play with my yet unopened tools. I was a little uncomfortable lighting the alcohol burner the first time but I soon became comfortable with it. It will take a lot more experimenting on my part to come up with "the perfect rose." One of the tools is for curling the silk petals and that will take a little more practice.

I love my first flower and wanted to share the results. I look forward to working with the Hanah Silk as well. I have some prepared with the stiffening and just need another play day. Dyeing your silks, stiffening the fabric, cutting the petals and then using the flower tools to shape them is time-consuming. It's not for someone who wants instant gratification. I love to see the flowers come to life so I don't mind spending the hours it takes to reach this point.

Amazing East Coast Trip

Our trip to the East Coast was amazing!!! It was a dream come true...doing only those things crazy quilters and SRE lovers enjoy doing. We shopped during the day and created and experimented in the remaining hours.

We arrived at the Philadelphia airport with Stephanie there to greet us. We spent the first part of our vacation with her and her wonderful family, including Diamond, her beautiful Maltese. Stephanie is an amazing artist and her studio is the perfect place to create. Her love is doll making and her creations are the most amazing I've ever seen.

Stephanie's husband, Eddie, has a wonderful hobby as well. One of the high points of our visit was taking a ride in this beauty!

Vic, Stephanie, Lynnis and I went to New York City on Saturday and spent the day in the garment district shopping for fabrics, ribbons, trims, beads, etc. etc. etc. We took the train into the city which was a new experience for me.

I'm planning several articles for CQMagOnline and don't want to share too much information on my blog. I will definitely post links to my articles as they appear in CQMag.

The second part of our adventure was spent in Pennsylvania with Vic and her husband, Mike, along with her wonderful extended family of animals. Sadie the papillion and Pearl the kitten needed to come home with me but I couldn't figure out a way to smuggle them out.

Many of you know Victoria Adams Brown and her online business Ribbonsmyth. I met Vic about 8 years ago at the Omaha CQ Convention and became an instant follower. She instilled the love
of silk ribbon embroidery and became a wonderful friend and mentor.


Vic and Mike own a beautiful farm in the countryside of Pennsylvania. What an amazing place to live and create! She is surrounded by such beauty and rich history. The home was built in the 1800's and they have remodeled and added on, retaining the old and historical beauty of the home.

I have memories to last a lifetime from this wonderful trip. I hope to share more photos and tales of our adventures as time permits.

Texas Girls Fly to East Coast

I'm up in the wee hours of the morning too excited to sleep. Lynnis and I are flying to the East Coast this morning to visit dear friends Stephanie and Vic. They have a wonderful itinerary planned with some fabulous shopping in New Jersey, Pennsylvania and New York City. I can't believe I'm going on this great adventure doing only those things we crazy quilters enjoy doing.

I plan to take lots of pictures and I know I will have many adventures to share with you when I return. I'll look forward to blogging and doing some articles in CQMagOnline regarding this fabulous trip.

Jules had originally planned to make the trip with us but a broken foot and family illness prevent her from going. We will miss you sweet friend.

My Singer Featherweight

Before putting my sewing machine away I wanted to take a picture. I love my little featherweight and it sews beautifully. According to the serial number it was made in 1943.

I placed some of my favorite pincushions and needle cases around it. I made the green wool heart necklace at our retreat last year. The old wooden spool is covered in a beaded peyote with a stuffed pincushion circling it. The one with the handle is made with a bottle cap filled with emery. I have little beaded grape clusters hanging from the handle.

You might recognize the heart and decorated Alto id box. These are both patterns and/or kits available from dear friend Vic at Ribbonsmyth. She also made the teaspoon pincushion as a gift and it sits beside me at all times when I'm stitching at home.

Pictured on the right is the project I was working on. My old hanging makeup bag was so easy to travel with and I've been looking for a new one to replace it. I haven't had any luck finding one so decided to make my own. On several occasions I was tempted to throw it in the garbage but I did manage to finish. The stitching is far from acceptable but it serves it's purpose well. I can have all my makeup and toiletries in one place.

Trying to stitch with plastic as one of the fabrics is difficult. I found it worked easier to lay a piece of paper between the plastic and the sewing machine. Then tear away the paper when finished.

I want to introduce you to my wonderful Crazy Quilt Bee. From left to right...Jan, Lynn, Maureen, me, Karen, Lynnis, Dolores, Chris (with grandson Will) Julie and Melanie. We are the infamous Lake Jackson Group. Jan established our group in 1999 with her first CQ class. Lynnis took that beginning class followed by me. All the other girls arrived at different times throughout the years that followed.

I am blessed to have such a wonderful group of friends who enjoy doing the same things as I do. All are extremely talented and do beautiful and creative work. I've written a number of articles about our group over the years. You can check these out through the past issues of CQMagOnline.

Chris rented a beach house and invited her wonderful family from different areas of the United States. They celebrated her birthday on April 11 with fun and festivities. We gathered at the beach on Tuesday for our regular weekly meeting.

We were in for a wonderful and totally unexpected treat. Her sisters, Pat and Petra, served us with shrimp cocktail, chicken salad on a diced tomato with avocado and lettuce. We enjoyed fresh, homemade strawberry pie and coffee for dessert. Everything was as delicious as it was beautifully served. We want Chris to have more birthdays. We also want her sweet sisters to cook for us once a week at our Bee.

I think I caught Karen (in red) swallowing her first bite. You never know when I'll snap that picture! To her right is Petra and Chris. Those shrimp are huge even by Texas standards.

Julie (in black & white) arrived a little late so she's having her first and second course together. Seated to her left is Dolores busy at work on her pin-weaving. She's making a purse.


The beach you see in the background is located on the Texas Gulf Coast. On the Gulf of Mexico, Surfside Beach is a popular area for tourists in the summer season. The beach is located about 15 miles from where I live and approximately 70 miles south of Houston, Texas. During hurricane season you will hear Surfside Beach and Freeport, Texas mentioned often.

Jan, our wonderful founder and mentor, is seated in this picture. Standing beside her is Karen, Chris and Will, Julie and Melanie.

I've taken some photos of two beautiful bonsai plants. We have a wonderful friend who is a master with training and growing bonsai. He started this small tree for us last year. It was a gift from dear friends Tim and Debi.

Liem kept it for a year and began it's training program. He's promised to help us nurture it. I've placed a quarter on the right side of the trunk to give you an idea of the size.

For the past several years Liem brings this beautiful jasmine bonsai for us to enjoy during the blooming season. The aroma is wonderful! I don't remember the exact age of this tree but it's around 50 years old. Jasmine is a vine that sends out long runners. You see it in our area hanging from fences and trellis. It's absolutely amazing to think of the love and patience, not to mention the talent, that went into training this vine to be a miniature tree.

I have a quarter placed in the middle of the trunk to give you an idea of the size of this trunk. Isn't it gorgeous?

My Button Necklace

I'm almost finished with my button necklace. I have several additional charms I would like to attach. I'm really pleased with how it turned out but very glad to be finished. Crocheting the necklace band is not difficult but attaching the buttons is very time consuming. The buttons want to twist and turn and it can become very frustrating at times.

I've added a number of gold charms and my favorite in the tiny ArtBra charm purchased from Ribbonsmyth. As a designer of five of those ArtBras this is a very special charm and keepsake. If you enlarge the photo you can see the tiny ArtBra on the right side.

Breakfast at Karen's

Jan, Linda and I went to visit Karen today for a fun day of stitching and visiting. Karen is a member of our Lake Jackson Crazy Quilt Bee but lives about 80 miles north. She comes to Lake Jackson twice a month and we try to visit and stitch in her home once a month.


She is a wonderful hostess and had a warm pecan pie waiting for us today. Jan asked if we might have a piece for breakfast - thus the title: "Breakfast at Karen's" Let me assure you it was an outstanding breakfast!

Karen wanted to make one of my silk roses so we worked on that project today. Pictured here is Karen holding her almost finished rose. She did a beautiful job and I was extremely proud. Another of our friends is opening a new quilt shop and I'll be teaching the Hanah silk rose. This was an excellent opportunity to practice.


Jan worked on her beautiful block for the 2009 ArtBra Ladies wall hanging. Be sure and check the Flickr site on my sidebar where you can see the blocks that are completed so far. This will be another wonderful work of art.





Linda worked on a wool project today. My photography skills were lacking today. I was too busy having fun to worry about my photos. Linda's beautiful project is not visible in this photo and I've cropped the top of Karen's head. I'll try to do better.