Christmas In July!!

In order to cool out during this HOT month of July, we can think about the winter months and sew up something fantastic!

Here's a cooool row by row quilt that could work for Christmas and January--

lots of snow featured!!  You can find this free pattern here

Another row by row The Spruce

Ode To Age................

Today is my mother's 97th birthday--unbelieveable!  She certainly didn't think she'd survive to be this age--neither did we! My brothers have arrived from Scottsdale and Dallas to celebrate with us--although, this will be a short visit--I think Mother relishes the fine moments we spend with her--I'm sure she won't remember tomorrow whether we were there or not--but, for the time being--we're present to wish her "Happy Birthday!"

A Mystery for You!

Once again, I'm traveling--so, here is a mystery I found that would be fun to do

the other half of this year--it runs through February, 2018.

Meadow Mist Designs has already posted the fabric requirements.

The cutting instructions will be posted August 6th and

each first Thursday there after.

I know I'm going to go through my stash to see what I

can use--this mystery will be for two sizes--lap and queen--

While I'm traveling, I will be thinking about fabrics/colors.

Flamenco! The Dance...................

I really didn't know much about Flamenco, the dance.  Oh, I've seen it performed but the history was totally off my radar until the visit to Santa Fe's International Folk Art Museum--the display was awesome!  Costumes galore............



"The art form developed over several centuries from Gypsy, Moorish, Andalusian, and other roots. Flamenco music and dance became popular in the early 19th century as café entertainment.

Canto (“song”) is the core of flamenco, and like baile (“dance”), it has three forms: grande or hondo (“grand” or “deep”), intense, profound songs, tragic in tone, and imbued with duende, the transformation of the musician by the depth of the emotion; intermedio (“intermediate”), moderately serious, the music sometimes Oriental-sounding; and pequeño (“small”), light songs of exuberance, love, and nature."

Flamenco is danced around the world--here is silk dress from

Japan

Would love to see this dress in action!

Madrid Span dress 1970-1980

Madrid, 1965--bought to New Mexico to wear at

New Mexico venues and the first year of the

New Mexico Festival Flamenco International

Variety of costumes worn by men and women

This is one of the costumes that Maria Benitez would

wear in her exciting dances--A native New Mexican, Benítez is best known for the work of the company she and her husband Cecilio founded and direct, Teatro Flamenco.

I love the detail on the dresses

especially the crocheted collar

Just imagine the sway of this skirt--

Feria Dress, Seville, Spain, 2011

The small shawl is cotton dated 2014 from Seville also

Towards the middle of the nineteenth century, various agricultural fairs took place around the city of Seville and many gypsy farmers wives began attending these fairs wearing handmade dresses which they had crafted from old, everyday clothes. They were often adorned with ruffles and frills in order to make the simple fabrics more beautiful and aesthetically pleasing. 

During the Seville Ibero-American Exposition of 1929, members and representatives of high society attended the event wearing the traje de Sevillana (pronounced tra-hey), and thus, the dress received its first official recognition.

From that time, the popularity of the dress began to spread outside the borders of the region, eventually becoming a truly distinctive element of Andalusian culture. Maintaining its most recognisable features (fitting, cut, and accessories), the dress has accompanied the evolution of the regional flamenco tradition and has spread even further, both nationally and internationally.

The mantón or shawl is the most spectacular part of the Flamenco costume.  The shawls’ vibrant colors and exuberant designs exude the culture of Andalusia and give an extra outlet to your interpretative potential:  In your hands, the mantón opens new vistas of sensational dance movement.

The Spanish mantón is actually a square piece of cloth, hand-embroidered through and through by women who live in Seville and have over 50 years of experience in crafting hand-made shawls. All of the Flamencista Shawl Collection is made from the finest materials available. All of the shawls, the product of exquisite haute-couture craftsmanship, are hand-sewn and hand-embroidered in the capital of Andalusia. 

In 1808 the invasion of Spain by Napoleon's forces

prompted anti French sentiment.  The resistance to all things French led 

to an enthusiasm for regional Spanish folk culture.

Traditional dress, once considered the purview of farmers and

peasants, became the fashion among the elites of urban society.

This same style of dress became the style worn for village

fiestas and was eventually adopted for the stage.

Handed down from generation to generation, flamenco was

originally performed within families or communities or

Gitano (Spanish Romany) origin in southern Spain. 

I See Circles!

Do you ever take the time to view the designs in everyday life?  Yesterday I was thinking about all the circles that are in the kitchen--stove top burner circles, pots, lids, benches, cups, glasses (hard to drink out of something not round!), bottle tops, etc. etc. etc.

Then I open my blogger feed and see more circles!!  This time on a quilt--and it is free!

A Bright Corner features this circle quilt for your sewing pleasure--

and then I find this Cheerio Quilt-- more circles by Missouri Star!

So, don't be like me--going around in circles to find the right pattern to sit down and sew!  Just do it!!

Traveling Knits.....................

Antirrhinum socks

by Rachel Coopey

With all my might, body and soul, I'm trying to keep up with the Year of Techniques challenge--so far, I only skipped one month and that was May with the cute little mouse--someday, I might go back and knit up that fellow.  The socks are July's challenge and learning event.  I'm very familiar with socks so this lesson was on knitting a heel flap--no problem with me.  There are great step by step videos to help you through knitting a heel flap if you find that a task.    The yarns are yummy for these socks--

On The Road Again............

Time to head back south--we visited in Denver; enjoyed an early birthday dinner with our daughter at her favorite restaurant--but now, it's on the road again--as we sing Willie Nelson's song--



See you down the road!