Toasted Almond Party Spread

Stopping by the local Kroger store after work last night, this is what I was craving ~

Toasted Almond Party Spread

8 oz. cream cheese, softened -
6 oz. shredded swiss cheese -
1/2 cup mayo -
1/2 cup almonds (toast in oven/on stovetop before hand) -
4 tbsp. sliced scallions -
a pinch or two of black pepper -
1/8 tsp. nutmeg

Mix all ingredients together in a small casserole dish~bake at 350 degrees for 12 minutes~serve immediately with assorted crackers or on toast
points~be sure to put your favorite Christmas fabric underneath your dish (mine is an Alexander Henry print from 1997, called "Santa Gets Dressed"...

Quilting update: sent a portfolio of photos off to Quilting Arts, LLC...and
creating a commission quilt due by Christmas - I'll keep you posted!

Heather at 16

"Life is rough" ~

"Hey, I just got done scaring a mouse to death (evidence found in basement) - what do you expect?" 

Cell Structure and Green Goddess Dressing

A teen's science project: goofy/creative! Jason used my ultra thick embossing enamel, a Smartie candy, a mint, and some ABC gum (already been chewed) ~ I laughed before I told him it was great...





















My "Green Goddess Dressing" quilt from the Small Wonders exhibit is back from Houston ~ Karey and company are very careful about how quilts come back to their makers ~ it actually arrived last Friday (5 days after festival), but Fed Ex refused to give it to Jason because he is under 21 ~ I was impressed...on Monday, I was home when it was delivered ~

Did you hear the news???

Follow the link: Quilting Arts, LLC - Home of Quilting Arts Magazine and Cloth Paper Scissors
TALK ABOUT INSPIRATION ON MANY LEVELS ~

Hmmm...Since Pokey and staff were so wonderful to work with last year, and I have been leaping out of the box once again as an artist...I'm considering submitting some work ~

This week: I'm being interviewed by an art student for a college project (oh man, I just had to correct my spelling on the word college - it came out 'collage.' "This arts stuff is coming out of me everywhere. I'm journaling like crazy~I'm dreaming~I'm creating~couldn't get to sleep last night until I got up and sketched this Gaia image~ended up doing nighty night at 6 am.~handed Jason $3.25 for his school lunch, because I forgot how to make a sandwich, and I lost the manual dexterity needed to spread peanut butter on celery. Even my home-made iced mocha didn't initiate any synapses in my cerebrum...
Ramble, ramble, ramble, I think my brain is scrambled, I know because I babble...it's almost midnight, and time to go into the studio!

Women of Stash!

Okay, so it's a working title...

I started this quilt two years ago ~ 45x45 inches, and the largest that I had ever attempted. Gave it up. Then, one night "they" were calling me. "Let's see if she remembers where she put us."
I have to admit I started freaking out a little when I couldn't remember right away.
The title, "Women of Stash" was decided upon two years ago because I didn't buy any new fabric to start this quilt. Everything came from my stash. I pieced fabrics for the backing. I even stitched pieces of Warm and Natural together (what a pain).

I started a journal since I am determined to finish this one. For entries in 2007, I've made that decision. When I started thinking on the word stash, and what that means, part of it for me is not wanting to let go, not wanting to CUT, SLASH, WANTING TO SAVE IT FOR GOD ONLY KNOWS WHAT!!!

Well, to start, I cut the quilt top into 9 pieces, approximately 15x15 inches each. It originally had only 72 goddesses on it, and that wasn't nearly enough, so I added 45(?) more. Added circles, and folk hearts, again from stash. Most are connected, some now are broken. More journaling.

I'm pillowcasing each section, and quilting with gold metallic (good Superior) thread. How will I sew them together? Not sure. When they are stitched together, my design should look like a tree. Pictured is the bottom section, and I think I should move on to the bottom left next...

Blogger note: I've been reading about the problems, and I haven't been able to upload photos from any folders, but for now "Blog This" on Picasa seems to work.

Jason - October 2006

Here's the quilt that I made for my son in honor of his confirmation last month. Really enjoyed putting this one together, as I used pieces of jeans from his toddler years, and other bits of fabric from clothing that I made for him. His favorite colors (now) are red, blue, and black, so I dug through stash. Included some images of bass guitar stuff, including one of his beloved Ibanez ~ since that was a gift from our pastor, I asked him if he would write a few words on that applique (see detail shot)...

Some hand-dyed pieces, a zipper, guitar picks, the charm that my dad gave me at my confirmation 36 years ago, and single words printed that describe who he is right now.

It's home from the gallery now, and will be hung in his room as soon as he picks up a few million things and clears a path...