Wisconsin Shows It's Sturdy Backboane In January

Crisp Cold Days are hear and views from my window look out on an old tree
that reminds me of Crazy Quilt Patterns.  The gentle curves and twists could
easily be worked into outlining patterns for Crazy Quilts. 

I recently ordered some quilt books from Amazon this past month.  Crazy Quilts patterns and ideas were in several of them.  the small book Floral Stitches shows you how to make flowers from pictures in your garden The book is wrote by Judith Baker Montano.  I get most of my books from Amazon. Some new and some are used at a cheaper rate.  All three of these books show you how to do the different stitches for Crazy Quilting.  My sister Pat showed me how to do a couple too.  I will include some of her pictures of the work she has done when she was teaching a craft class.

This crazy quilt is a "work in progress"made from rayon dresses and vintage lace.
Made by my sister Pat

This is an unfinished piece that needs a lot more embroider
made by Pat

This is a small crazy quilt using vintage material by my sister Pat

Pat has been sewing and embroidering for a very long and has taught numerous craft and sewing classes in her local town.  I am a beginner with some things and undertaking crazy quilting is my next big challenge.  Our weather has been bitter cold last week with below zero temperatures and yesterday it rained, snowed, drizzled all day.  I poured over the above books and studied the beautiful stitches.  I will start to experiment with some and hopefully post them on my blog.  I love Wisconsin winters because it gives me lots of in the house time.

It is a time for dreaming, planning, and gathering information for all the different quilt projects to start.  I have been embroidering a strip for a quilt I want to make for my spare bedroom.  The pattern comes from Vignette magazines from Australia and developed by Leanne Beasley of Leanne's house  www.leanneshouse.typepad.com    Love her work and my next embroider picture will be another one of hers.  

My work in progress from the pattern in Vignette magazine.

While I busy my self in the house where it is nice and warm, Dick, my husband for 49 years is outside roughing it shoveling where his new John Deer garden tractor snow blower can't reach.  Like the outside dog pen and the deck that surrounds our home..Dick can't get enough of outside works.  He gets board sitting around the house.  Yesterday he was out in the garage working on making a table for the house.

Luke our Airedale Terror helping Dick shovel out his pen.

Luke's version of trying to be a lap dog

Gilly age 10 and Luke age 1 waiting for a treat

Another fun thing Dick does is walk Luke almost every day to wear off his abundance of energy.  Both of them love to go exploring to see tracks showing deer in our woods or perhaps checking out the outer wildlife in the back of our property.

Peace caresses the land as it also caresses our souls
Quieting the sounds of yesterdays
letting today rest and listen to the silence
Hearing our God's splendid whisper
tell us He loves us as he loves
this world, this huge ball he created,
for mankind to enjoy not destroy.
Peace My Friends and Sending Love Your Way......

Kate


Hope to hear from you all, letting me know what are you doing during the long winter days