Chukar Cherries and Eating Mice Scary food???

I know...two posts in one day....catching up after being busy with guests.  I HAD to get this in today.  My niece Beth is a copy writer and recipe developer for Chukar Cherries, a specialty food company located in Prosser, Washington.  She developed these for a scary Halloween treat...I'm not sure what Chukar product she was using...or this may just be using a prototype of a Chukar product...I thought they were maraschino cherries...or cherries preserved in their entirety, but I can't find them on their website.  

I mean....can you imagine...eating a mouse?

We fed a couple to Drew....he was pretty happy with them.  I ate one...and they were yummy, but I liked Chukar's dried cherries best.  Or maybe the cherry raspberry sauce....or or...

Chukar Cherries is a pretty locally oriented, wholesome (that is, not with a lot of additives and trying to be as good to the earth as possible) company.

My favorite thing about Chukar, however, is their graphics.  This is Chukar Cherries Pike Market Gift box....I was sooo lucky, my cousin Lourdes brought me a box....and I ate all the chocolate cover cherries out of it, and saved the box...

So...what's that bird? A Chukar.  Chukars are gamebirds imported into North America and are related to pheasants and partridges.  They're pretty savvy birds, and pretty good looking.  An amusing thing....after Chukar Cherries got started, they discovered that the hunting enthusiast referred to the chukar's droppings as...chukar cherries....I assure you, though, Chukar Cherries items taste really, really good. Take a look at their website.  Many of the words are those of my wonderful niece Beth.

Pike Market gift box

Tripping with the Internet

Isn't this a gorgeous color combination?  It's a grapevine growing on a purple trellis next to Shibori Dragon in Lakewood, Washington.  When I travel, I often ask people I "know" on the internet about what to see or do.  Usually, it results in happy things...even if I am a bit sheepish to admit to my sister "Oh, I need to meet up with a friend."  I know my husband has gotten used to it....even if he did think there was a possibility we were meeting up with a murder when we went to a picnic and stayed the night with some friends I had only met through the internet.   Since we survived that time, and saw some pretty cool orchids and drank some wonderful home-brews, well....he's gotten more relaxed with the idea.

On my last trip to Montana via Washington state, I asked on the Quilt art message list what quilty things were happening in the Olympia area.  Since I was only going to be there a couple of days before heading out to Montana, I wasn't able to take in a show of antique quilts north of Seattle....which I would have adored doing, but it would be a three hour drive.

I did, however, take up Larkin Van Horn's suggestion to go to Shibori Dragon.  I was dumbfounded...such a  wonderful collection of yarns, specialty fibers, vintage and antique Japanese fabrics, a wide range of embellishments, hand-dyed fibers and threads, and lots of Shibori materials, stencils and templates.  My sister, who doesn't quilt, was pleased with the yarn selection....and I left quite a few of my hard earned shekels in the Dragon's maw.

I was bummed yesterday when I got an email from Shibori Dragon saying they were closing their shop....but at least they are keeping their on-line and show presence. So, check out the link  and if you are in the area. maybe you can pick up some great sale stuff.

Happily, I got to meet two "friends" this trip.  Roni, who I knew from ages past on Quilt Chat lives in Great
Falls and Kristin from Missoula.  My sister asked me about my friend in Great Falls.....and I was surprised to recall that I have "known" Roni for about 12 years.  Kristin is a follower of my blog, and surprisingly, she had worked on the Hoopa Valley Reservation near Eureka, California, as had my brother (a forester for the B.I.A.) although they were there several years apart.  I foolishly did not get pictures of me with either of them...but I am happy to report that neither Kristin nor Roni are ax murderers and I thoroughly enjoyed visiting with each of them.  You never know just what the internet is going to bring you, and for me, it's just good.

The Last Slice on the Dayton Skyline

The Miami Valley Art Quilt Network's rendition of the Dayton Skyline as seen in May

You may recall me writing about the Dayton Landmarks project which the Miami Valley Art Quilt Network under took and exhibited earlier this year.  You can see what I wrote about it here. (There are a total of 4 posts, this is just the first, and they are consecutive commencing June 4, 2012)

Our project was to interpret various Dayton area landmarks in fiber.  To that end, Ronnie Doyal took photographs and we divided the photographs into "slices" then divvied them to all the participating members of the Miami Valley Art Quilt Network.  This is Ronnie's shot of the Dayton Skyline.  Back in May, we were missing slice number 1.  Life had interfered with the person who originally had it, and wasn't able to do it.  So...we showed it without the slice.  I was adamant that we find someone else to take that slice. Some of our members said, just forget it....but then the photograph wouldn't match our renditions.  Not only that, I felt that the absence of that first slice made for a less dynamic and balanced composition. We needed that slice.

Suzanne Kirchner, Slice 1 Dayton Skyline

Suzanne Kirchner, a relatively new member of MVAQN stepped up to the plate and I am just ecstatic over her piece.  Here it is. I love the turquoise building.  I am also thrilled with her fabric choices.  Absolutely unexpected, but perfect touches.  The turquoise blocky print really reads like the windows in the building at the far left of the photograph.  But when we look more closely at the detail, you find even more happy surprises.

Don't you just love that shot of madras type plaid at the far left?  And I love that really "thready print" green just below the spruce tree.











And the pink is just the perfect touch for the building at the right.  Look at the wonderful texture she put in with the thread painting which also gives the shading on the spruce.

I think that Suzanne's piece fits wonderfully with the others which were done prior to hers, and is the absolute perfect completion of this image....and far better than leaving it as the truncated piece which originally showed up there.


I'm participating in Nina Marie's "Off the Wall Fabric Fridays" .  Please check out the other blog participants here.  I'm sure you'll find lots of fund, fiberlicious stuff.

The quilts will be on exhibition at the Dayton Metro Library, 215 East 3rd. Street, Dayton, OH  45402 until December 27, 2012 (Library tele.: 937-463-2665).  additional showings will be at the South Park United Methodist Church, 120 Stonemill (at Brown St.) Jan. 6, 2013 until Feb. 27, 2013 and additionally at the Southminster Presbyterian Church, 7001 Far Hills Ave., Dayton from March through April 2013.

Champaign Quilter's Guild Show-the Small but Mighty!

Part of the exhibition hall at the Champaign Quilter's Guild show

On Sunday, October 21, I wrote about the Towne Square Quilter's Guild show in Greenville, Ohio and mentioned that I took in a second show that day in Urbana, Ohio.  I usually don't take in two shows on the same weekend, but this day I took in two on the same day...separated by an hour and half's driving.

I went to the Urbana show in order to see the work of the guild and what they were interested in since one of their member's contacted me to give them a lecture next spring.  I try to tailor my lectures to the interests of each guild.  I have to say that I will put the Urbana show on my calendar from now on.  The work was exquisite and the show facilities were very pleasant. I also didn't mind my drive through rural Ohio on a gorgeous fall day...I didn't even mind getting caught in a Ohio Parade....driving slowly behind a seeder until it was safe to pass.

Outstanding applique work at Champaign show.

Here you can get a sense of the absolutely exquisite applique work.  The rows were filled with incredible applique and very fine piecing with a couple of antique quilts thrown in for fun.  The first applique quilt you see on the left is Marilyn Hiltibran's rendition of Edyta Sitar's pattern, "The Laundry Basket Chorus."  Sharon Vitt machine quilted it.  The second piece is Marcia Switzer's "Ginger People", excellently machine quilted by my friend Chris Landis.

I love Birds, by Emily Miller

This nicely done fussy cut pieced quilt was Emily Miller's first quilt.  I have to say, she did an excellent job for a first attempt.  My friend Joan Sterr machine quilted it on her HQ-16.   I included a detail so you could see how she matched all her points, and didn't cut off a single one!

"I Love Birds," detail

Marily Hiltibran's "Sunflower Hill."

Marilyn Hiltibran did this wonderful hand appliqued piece, "Sunflower Hill," designed by Julie Popa and machine quilted by Janet Amlin.

I am going to show a couple more pieces from Urbana over the next couple of days.

Post Cards to Benefit Friends for Life

 While I was in Montana, Pokey Bolton, Quilting Arts Diva, announced a project she thought up...her "IQF Pet Project Postcard Pledge."  Just before she left to do some show work, she found a pit bull mix stray.  Pokey scooped the dog up, deposited her at the vets, had her checked out, and tried to find the owner...then, when she returned looked hard to find a no-kill shelter to see if this abandoned animal could find a forever-home.

Pokey's got a soft heart like that.  She had already rescued her dog Clarence, and at least one cat.....She knew of Friend's For Life no kill shelter in Houston because that's where she found Clarence.  Pounds, Humane Society Shelters, and other rescue organizations have a lot of bills, and often not enough money to meet their needs.  No-kill shelters have even more pressure because they often take animals that have issues, some behavioral, some just because they happened to have a certain kind of ancestor....such as Pitt Bulls, Rottweilers, Dobermann's etc.

"Longhorns have homes on the Range"

"Spot and Dash"

So, Pokey asked people to make 4" x 6" fabric postcards that she is going to sell at the International Quilt Festival in Houston.

So...I started out by making the top one.  Blech. But it was a post card.  I decided I would whip out my Inktense pencils and make a Longhorn, using my hand painted sky fabric and some rust dyed fabric for the range....after all, Longhorns all have homes on the range, shouldn't other domestic animals have a shot for a home?  Besides....it's Texas...longhorns should sell.

The last one is just because I love goldfish.   This is "Spot" and "Dash" portraits of two goldfish from my pond.  I used Inktense on these, then sheer crepe, which I stitched the fin lines through...and put them on a batik "pond."

The dumb thing was that with all the flooring, cleaning, cooking, etc. for kid coming home with friends last week, and the fact that we ripped up the carpeting in the dining room.....well....I forgot to mail them.

Ruth Powers graciously agreed to take them to Pokey at THE SHOW ....as Ruth won an award...I wanted to to do more...especially a house bunny one because my niece Katie adopted a pet rabbit from her local shelter.  I think my crew here will forgive me...Lemmie was a dumped kitty, Acei was an abandoned cat from people who moved and left three litters of cats behind, Angel, and her predecessor Tassie were both from Protector's of the Animals in Connecticut.  Henry, my first cat when I was out on my own was one who if I didn't take him was going to be drowned.  Harrison, my roomie Nancy and my cat was one which had gone through three homes before I took him in in Williamsburg.  My other neice Beth's dog, Trucker, came from a English Shepherd rescue group, and Luna was a stray who I finally tracked down the owner and they gave her to me.  So...yes, it is about time I give back too.

If you are going to Houston, check out the sale.  They will be sold for $20 each and Pokey is also contemplating some on-line sales.  Maybe I'll get to do a bunny too, if she does!  Thank's Pokey, and a HUGE thanks to Ruth Powers.

Towne Squares Quilt Show Darke County, Ohio

Dragon Tatoo, Wyatt Marker, owner, G'mal Crowell and  Laurena  Marker. 

Last weekend, I had the opportunity to go to two quilt shows on the same day....two hours apart.  It was kind of a mad dash across my corner of Ohio.    The first show I went to was the Towne Squares Quilt Guild's show at the Darke County Fairgrounds in Greenville, Ohio.  The Towne Squares is a predominently traditional guild.  Each year they hold their show on Columbus Day weekend and they often ask the Batty Binder's of Troy to join in and show quilts, as well as other friends.

An interesting quilt was this one, called "Dragon Tattoo" which combines traditional blocks with appliques designed from tattoos.  I have to say, it was difficult to read the marker labels on the goldenrod colored paper...It appears that G'Mal Crowell and Laurena Marker designed and made this quilt for Laurena's son Wyatt Marker as a graduation present.   The applique was completed by Linda McGlothin.

Most of the quilts didn't mention that they were made from patterns from books or otherwise.  Some did mention it, but others didn't.  I did a quick search on all of these to see if I could find quilts by the same name mentioned in these patterns.  I didn't find any, and I am pretty sure that this one, at least, was designed by the makers.  It was quilted by "a friend."

Rhonda George, "In Full Bloom."

As I have been thinking a lot about texture lately, this interesting piece caught my eye.  Rhonda George took the "silk" flowers from commercially purchased flower bunches and attached them to a plain strip.  Each flower center was held by a gold bead.  Back in the early 1990s, using silk flowers on quilts was popular, but I haven't seen it in a long time, and I don't remember ever seeing one quite like this one.

This last one really interested me...and I wondered if it were computer generated.  The ability to get all four blocks to be the same seems highly unlikely if it were done only with the sewer guiding the machine, although I suppose it could have been marked out.

While I was at the show, many of the quilters, mostly traditional quilters, were commenting on how the various computer generated quilting programs were not really showing the ability of the quilter.  Several professional quilters commented that they simply couldn't quilt the quilts in the way the Statler Stitchers and other quilting programs did it...and that they didn't see the ability in setting  a program and walking away from the long arm or sewing machine letting it do all the work.

I sure wish I could have talked to Terry Thoreen about this piece she called "Points of View."  Which is seen above.  She did three  pieces in this style, at left is a detail from "String Art", and the third was called "Pretty Circles."

The Fall Garden

This year, I haven't written much about my garden.  The reason being that I haven't been able to work much in it, and frankly, it is overwhelming me.  I cannot physically take care of all the beds I have in my .80 acre lot.  I look out and curse the fact that I was so gonzo when I put in the gardens here.....WHAT WAS I thinking....I was reveling in the fact that I had .80 acres instead of .28 acres like I had in Connecticut.

I am sure that my neighbors are cringing.  My garden style is more naturalistic and tends to be stuffed full of things...not like the neat, carefully manicured, and regular items that most of my neighbors have.  One visitor which I don't like much....although I do like the color is goldenrod, the bright yellow flowers which you see next to the fence in this picture. (Solidago canadiensis).

Goldenrod is a weed here....a perennial weed which reproduces madly through runners and the rather plentiful seed heads.  It is a glorious plant...and while I work madly at trying to eradicate it, the British and Germans are planting it in their gardens and making cultivars.  At this time of year, I remember one of th poems my second grade teacher Mrs. Zimmer had us memorize and recite..."The Goldenrod is yellow, the leaves are turning brown...the trees in apple orchard with fruit are bending down."  ("September", by Helen Hunt Jackson).  I know I have written about it before...but at this time of year, it always comes to mind.

I usually don't let this many days pass without posting....but I'm whacking away at the goldenrod and the foxtail grass, and any other weed I can lay my hands on.  I've been giving away iris rhizomes by the carload through freecycle, and have more to replant, and move.

In addition, darling daughter is coming home this weekend with some friends to go to a conference....so I am getting the house ready, and on top of that, we are re-flooring the living room and dining room with bamboo.

The sad part is that all I want to do is quilt.  :(  Soon.  Soon I shall be gloriously covered in thread.  At least that's what I promise myself. I laugh....most people think that spring is when  you have lots to do in the garden and fall is when everything comes to a halt...but fall is also when you put things to bed, try to prepare for that ellusive time in the spring when you THINK that you have time, but in Ohio, it slips from Winter into Summer with just a blink of the eye.  Cutting back, moving and dividing the spring bloomers, and for me, trying to get done the things which should have been done in the summer, but it was just too hot to do.