Play Date OUT ON THE FARM....

So, this AMAZING group of fiber artists who meet at the library get together for monthly "play dates". Often, they do it in somebody's home or studio. Every spring -- Dianna offers her farm. And it isn't just an afternoon or one-day event. IT IS SIX WHOLE DAYS ON HER FARM...No kidding...Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday.  UNBELIEVABLE...

There are no fees, or class registrations.  They pass around (and email) a basic schedule, with a listing of the demonstrations or techniques that will be shared.  But mostly -- you just go to the farm, and if you're interested in what somebody is teaching, you sit down and learn something.  Or do something....or make something...it is completely remarkable to me...

When I finally found the farm -- there were lots of cars already...

This group was outside, doing some fabric dying

On this day (Sunday) -- these women were learning how to do seed beading...

The huge Quonset hut building was set up with long tables -- that hayrack in the back is loaded with snacks...

Every place I looked, there was a different group flexing their creative muscles...

Are you kidding me? A John Deere Gator parked out front!! This is SUCH AN IOWA MOMENT...

And -- the burning question is -- with access to all this creativity and excellent teachers -- WHAT DID RITA MAKE???

Dress from FROZEN

I got a lot of questions about how I made the dress from FROZEN...Unforunately, I didn't really take any "before" pictures of the dress I started with.  It was a spaghetti strap formal -- a long length, probably a size 10 ladies dress, with a chiffon overlay.  The first thing was to make it into a child's size.  I simply tied a knot in the straps, then I sewed a 1" seam on both sides, under the arms...the final alteration was to cut off about 18" from the skirt.

Putting a knot in the spaghetti straps not only made it fit Lilly, but I can take this knot out any time I want to make the dress LONGER...(pretty tricky, eh?)

The biggest feature of the dress is the sheer, flowing cape...

I used a sheer turquoise blouse as the way to wear the cape...

This is the dress UNDER the cape

I used t-shirt strips to face the hem...there was a big slit on the right side of the dress.

The blouse was cut down to make it a bolero jacket, and I used t-shirt fabric to create a simple tie in the front.

This is the dress without the cape.  I forgot to say that the sheer cape was made out of the chiffon I cut off the original dress.

The inside of the cape jacket...

Glitter snowflakes....ahhh.....beautiful...

The wet paint will dry as nothing but glitter...

Local Fiber Art Group

In February, I wrote about the Textile Art Group that meets monthly at the Fairmount Library.

To be completely honest -- because I've been working in the sewing industry for so long -- doing promotion and marketing for some of the biggest shows in the country -- I can be quite a know-it-all. I have been fortunate enough to take classes from the most famous teachers in the industry -- many of them are VERY GOOD FRIENDS of mine....

So it's hard for me to not feel like I've seen it, done it, sewed it...(ripped it apart, recycled it into a Maxi dress, sewed it again, wore it until I got sick of it, then took it to the Goodwill Store...)

But -- I WAS WRONG.

This group of Fiber Artists is a complete revelation to me. It's not an official guild or a club - there are no dues, no officers, no rules about what you should be making. AND NO JUDGEMENT. Art is whatever you decide it is. Each and every woman comes to the meeting because she wants to show the group what she's been working on...

flowers out of aluminum cans

baskets woven on deer antlers

Dolls...

fabric dying

quilting

a close up of the photos on the quilt

quilting combined with embroidery and painting

fabric painting...

Recently, they had their annual SPRING EVENT -- and I feel totally inspired and rejuvenated. I am SO EXCITED about doing something creative and diving into a new artistic project....

Frozen

This winter, the new Disney movie -- FROZEN -- was such a big hit with audiences everywhere -- the Princess Anna costume sold out on line.

I always say one of the BEST things about having little kids in your life is that you have an excuse to go to Disney movies...which I LOVE.....

In December -- I took Cash and Lilly to see Frozen...

Lilly ALWAYS LOVES going anywhere with Cash...she thinks he is just wonderful.  He is always kind to her, and the two of them get along very well.

Cash used my camera to take this picture of Lilly -- who ran over to this sign and said, "Grandma --- LOOK -- NEW YORK CITY...." (we are ALWAYS talking about New York City)

The day of the Talent Show -- Cash was at my house and he and Lilly baked a cake for his brother Garrett...

They are sooo adorable, right??  Well -- fast forward a few months...the movie came out on DVD -- and it seems to be the MOST POPULAR DISNEY MOVIE OF ALL TIME....

So -- it's EASTER -- and I should make something special for Lilly -- right?  What could be better than a FROZEN DRESS??  Complete with the sheer cape -- and glitter snowflakes...

YEP.  THIS GRANDMA CAN SEW...

Tuesday sofa report....

As I write this, I'm about three days into the "new sofa project"....And, at the rate I'm going, it could take me all summer.

The last time I saw the glider loveseat, it was sitting on the outside of the Salvation Army store, all faded and forlorn....but two employees were sitting on it -- taking a smoke break.  That made me smile...

Joann's is having a summer sale -- and outdoor fabric is 50% off right now. More Ritaluck, eh??

Of course, I would NEVER just buy ten yards of one fabric to recover the sofa. THAT would be so boring...anybody could have THAT sofa...

What if I bought three different fabrics -- the same pattern, but different colors? Orange for starters...

And yellow -- my favorite color -- maybe also teal??

But then I did the measurements. And the math. I need 10 yards of fabric -- even at half price, that means I'm spending more on the fabric than I spent on the sofa....It just felt WRONG....

THEN, Linda and I went to Hancock and checked out their flat folds...for only $5/yd -- I could have THIS....

They had a pretty good selection. I'd be able to mix up several wild patterns...

YOU WILL HAVE TO STAY TUNED.....

This project could take all summer. You know how one thing leads to another...I've already learned a BIG sewing lesson...

So -- for now -- the sofa project will by my regular MONDAY blog post...NEXT Monday you'll see what fabric I selected. In the end. Maybe. It's a work in progress....some decisions will be made, then sewed, then changed....I AM LOVING IT...

Memorial Day

Freedom Is Not Free

- Kelly Strong

 

I watched the flag pass by one day.
It fluttered in the breeze.
A young Marine saluted it,
and then he stood at ease.
I looked at him in uniform
So young, so tall, so proud,
He'd stand out in any crowd.
I thought how many men like him
Had fallen through the years.
How many died on foreign soil?
How many mothers' tears?
How many pilots' planes shot down?
How many died at sea?
How many foxholes were soldiers' graves?
No, freedom isn't free.

I heard the sound of TAPS one night,
When everything was still
I listened to the bugler play
And felt a sudden chill.
I wondered just how many times
That TAPS had meant "Amen,"
When a flag had draped a coffin
Of a brother or a friend.
I thought of all the children,
Of the mothers and the wives,
Of fathers, sons and husbands
With interrupted lives.
I thought about a graveyard
At the bottom of the sea
Of unmarked graves in Arlington.
No, freedom isn't free.

My Summer Project

By now -- you understand the power of Ritaluck. As soon as I pull into the Target lot -- a parking spot opens up near the front door. I have extraordinary luck when shopping at thrift stores and the bargains just keep on coming....as you know.

Dealing with all my treasures and great finds has turned into a FULL TIME JOB. It's so much work, no one woman could do it alone. My obsessive thrifting requires a TEAM...

My amazing team -- Carrie-- helps me to keep the clutter at bay. Year after year, she helps me get things organized. One of the big spring jobs is getting the porch set up for the summer. We bring out the slipcovers for the two chairs and loveseat glider...

Then -- it happened -- the LATEST item on my list of extraordinary finds.

I found a wonderful, sturdy, Lane bamboo sofa...at the local Salvation Army....WOW. We haven't had a full size couch in the house for almost 15 years....this could be fun...we could actually take a nap on this sucker....

But I am soo aware of all the work that's involved in bringing something as big as a SOFA into the house. I have to completely rearrange the furniture on the porch. Then, I have to rid of my old loveseat glider. Will there be room on the porch for the new sofa? I'll have to borrow John's truck to bring it home...

So, with all those things on my mind -- when I saw the sofa on a Friday -- I did not buy it. Over the weekend, I talked myself into it -- and out of it -- a dozen times. By Monday morning, I was 100% IN... I am ready for a project...the old little glider has way outlived it's usefulness.

Monday morning, I got to the Salvation Army at 9:00 AM -- and, of course, thanks to Ritaluck -- IT WAS STILL THERE...

It is butt ugly. But then, what do you expect for $89...??

It took me three days to ponder the sofa project...and activate my team. John loaned me his truck. Ross loaded up the old glider, and later that day, John and Ross got the new/old sofa off the truck and hauled it onto the porch. YES this is one of those jobs that's going to take a village...

Most importantly, Carrie CLEANED the porch. Ugh. She scrubbed the floor, and the wall, and by the time I got back with the sofa -- it slid right into it's new spot!!

We spend so much time on the porch -- this is going to be FUN...

My Fabulous GREAT Porch

If you're ever building a house -- be sure to put a large screened in porch on the Northeast side. You'll never regret it. Early in the morning, you'll watch the sun come up, it'll be shaded from the hot southern sun during the heat of the day, and there will almost always be a breeze in the late afternoon....

THEN -- if you hang four or five large hummingbird feeders -- you will be guaranteed many hours of entertainment...

This is the outside view of the porch...

This is the view of the feeders from our porch table...

From the outside, looking in, you can see my t-shirt fringe curtains...

My cousin Kim and I sitting on the porch -- it is one of our favorite things to do.

My cousin Linda and I spray painted this roll up shade. Perfect, eh??

When I made the cushion covers, the mission was to USE THE FABRIC I'd collected in my stash...

It was the summer of 2009.  LILLY was a baby --

Me, Emily, baby Lilly, Sophie and Bella.  All my girls -- chillin'on the  porch...

So -- why am I taking you on this nostalgic look back on my porch?

BECAUSE IT'S TIME FOR A CHANGE... This porch furniture was at least 40 years old when I got it in the 80's. I paid to have it reupholstered once...and that job lasted for about 10 years.

THEN, I sewed slipcovers...from scraps of fabric in my stash....and they've lasted for five years....This last set was a particular favorite of mine...

So, this furniture is actually 70 years old??  Hey -- they sure don't make it like they used to!!

After five years -- the upholstery is very faded, and the mildew broke myheart....

Hey, as it happens -- I LIKE CHANGE. And I'M READY FOR A PROJECT...hummmm...

You're curious, right?? This is going to be sooooo much fun!!

Princeton Talent Show

I was sooo excited when I heard my nephew Cale would be playing the guitar at the local talent show. You already know Princeton, Iowa is a mighty little town -- with many, many talented people.

Cale is one of those people who has been blessed with a musical talent. I have always envied those people..

At the Talent Show this year -- Cale would be playing a guitar solo -- and his younger brother, Cash, would be involved in a skit as well...

Amy with her youngest son, Cash...waiting for his turn

The two emcees did a pretty good job...

Sadly, this is the BEST picture I have of Cale -- checking his I-phone...??

Cale did AN AMAZING JOB that night. I was completely blown away by his guitar solo...he did the dueling banjos number -- and he played both parts -- in different keys...I CANNOT BELIEVE AMY DIDN'T GET A VIDEO.....!!!

Lillian walked up to the Princess-Anna-Lookalike from Frozen -- and said, "I like your dress" (more about that later)

It is remarkable that a little town like Princeton, Iowa (600 people?) even ATTEMPTS things like a Talent Show, or the Princeton Players. The venue is the upstairs of our old General Store (which closed 15 years ago). The building was donated to the city -- and they turned the first floor into a Civic Center. The upstairs was closed for decades -- but according to local legend, in the 20's and 30's, it was a popular spot for movies or roller skating...

There is a stage at one end, some pews on the side -- with folding chairs in the middle.

GOOD JOB, PRINCETON...YOU ROCK...